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HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN'f

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http://www.archive.org/details/fairytalesstorieOOande

3fair^ tlales
Stories

HE FAk.MliK IIFIEI) IHfc. L1L> A LUTLE AND PliEPKU UNDER.

PROPERTY OF THE Q. 5l o 9.-|3>

CITY OF :.EW YORK

H. R. H. THE PRINCESS OF WALES

BY SPECIAL PERMISSION.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION xvii

THE NIGHTINGALE i

THE JUMPERS ,5

THE TRAVELING COMPANION 21

THE MONEY-PIG 43

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 49

I The Be.m.nmn.: 51

II Wh.-\t Hai'Pe.ned to the Councilor ........ 53

HI The Watchman's Ad\enture .......... 60

IV A Head in Difficulty. A Recitation. A Most Unusual Journey ... 65

V The Transformation of the Clerk . . . . . . . . .71

VI The Best Thing the Galoshes Brought ....... 78

AUNTY TOOTHACHE 83

THE TINDER-BOX 97

LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS in

ELDER-TREE MOTHER 123

THE BROWNIE AT THE BUTTERMAN'S 137

THE SNOW OUEEN 143

The First Story — Which Treats of the Mirror and the Broken Pieces . . . 145

The Second Story — A Little Boy and a Little Girl ...... 147

The Third Story — The Witch's Flower Garden ....... 152

The Fourth Story — The Prince and Princess . . . . . . . 158

The Fifth Story — The Little Robber Girl . . . . . . . .164

The Si.xth Story — The Lapwoman and the Finwoman ...... 168

The Seventh Story — What had Happened in the Snow Oueen's Castle and what Hap-
pened Later on . . . . . . . . . . . . • '71

THE SWINEHERD 175

THE SWEETHEARTS . . .' 185

THE PINE-TREE 191

"THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN," SAID THE WOMAN FROM

THE MARSH 203

THE UGLY DUCKLING 219

THE FLYING TRUNK 235

THE STORKS 245

CONTENTS

PAGE

SILLY HANS 255

THE WILD SWANS 263

WHAT THE OLD MAN DOES IS ALWAYS RIGHT 283

THE OLD HOUSE 293

THUMBELINE 307

THE STORM SHIFTS THE SIGN-BOARDS 319

THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE CHIMNEY-SWEEP 327

•DADDY DUSTMAN (Ole Lukoie) 335

Monday . . . . . . . . . ■ . -339

Tuesday ..........-••• 341

Wednesday .............. 343

Thursday .............. 345

Friday 347

Saturday .............. 349

Sunday . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -351

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG CLAUS 353

THE SHIRF COLLAR ... 367

THE LITTLE MERMAID' 373

IT IS gUITE TRUE! 397

THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL 403

TWELVE BY THE MAIL 409

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 4'9

THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR D.\A AND HIS DAUGHTERS . . 437

THE GALLANT TIN SOLDIER 453

THE STORY OF A MOTHER 46'

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES 47'

THE SNOW MAN 479

"EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE" ....... 487

THE HAPPY FAMILY .... 499

THE SHADOW 505

THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA 5z>

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

The NicHTiNGA

The Emperor Feet as if Some One was Sittim. on his Chest. He Oi'Eneo his Ev
Saw it was Death ....... . .

The [umper's Arrive at the King's Palace .........

The Grasshopper Jumped right onto the King's Face .......

The Spring-Goose Sprang right into the Princess's Lap .......

Johannes Lay on his Knees by the Bed and Kissed his Dead Father's Hand ....

They Sat down under a Big Tree to Eat their Breakfast .......

The King Led Johannes Out into the Princess's Garden. In Every Tree Hung Three or Four
Skeletons of Princes who had Wooed the Princess .......

The Queen Went down on her Knees and Held up her Crown, Begging, " Take it, oh, take it! '

The Traveling Companion Flew behind the Princess and Kept on Whipping her with his Rod

Johannes Untied his Handkerchief and Showed the Princess the Ugly Head of the Troll

The Money-Box was Made in the Shape of a Pig, and Had the Usual Slit in its Back .

Crash! There he Lay on the Floor, all in Bits and Pieces, while the Money Rolled about

The Galoshes Had the Property of Instantly Transporting .Any One who Put Them On, to
Whatever Place, or Time he Wished .........

The Councilor Saw a Large Field before him, with a Few Bushes here and there, and a Broad
Stream Flowing through it ...........

It was One of the Taverns of those Days. A Number of People, Consisting of Skippers, Citi-
zens, and Learned Personages were Sitting There .......

"Bless me!" Said the Councilor, "Have I Been Lying Here in the Street, Dreaming?"

The Watchman Sat down again and Began Nodding. He Had Still the Galoshes on his
Feet .............

"The Upper Window is Open," Said the Canary. " Fly! Fly .Awai!''

The Next Mo.ment he Was the Clerk once more, but he Found Hi.mself Sitting on the Table
in his Room .............

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

A Grand Attack of Toothache was Coming On ........ 84

It Was Mistress Toothache, her Terrible Highness! ... I Felt as if a Red Hot Awl

Passed through my Cheekbone .......... 91

The Witch Hoisted the Soldier Up from the Hollow Tree ..... g8

The Soldier Lifted the Don Down on the Floor and Opened the Chest . . . . 101

The Soldier could See Through the Window How the People were Hurrying Out of the

Town to See him Hanged. He Heard the Drums Going and Saw the Soldiers Marching 105

The Three Dogs Danced in Front of the King's Carriage and Cried " Hurrah!" . . 108

" My Poor Flowers Are Quite Dead! " Said Little Ida . . . . . 112

Down on the Floor the Flowers were Dancing Most Gracefully Round and Round, Holding

Each Other by their Long, Green Leaves . . .117

The Flowers Led Sophia into the Middle of the Floor and Danced with her, Some of them

Forming a Circle round her . . . . . . . 119

The Flowers of the Elder-Tree Smelled so Sweetly . . . . . . .124

The Lid Gradually Lifted Itself and Large Branches of the Elder-Tree Shot Forth from the

Urn, Even through THE Spout 126

Under the Tree Sat an Old Sailor and hi^ Oi n Wnv. Elder-Tree Mother S.at in the Tree

AND Looked so Pleased . . • • • • • • -127

"Just as I was Standing There Readinc; volr Lettkr, Some One Put his Arm Round my

Waist — " "28

The Elder-Tree Branches Closed Around Them till They Seemed to Sit in an Arbor, and

Away it Flew with Them through the Air ■ '3°

Elder-Tree Mother Took Two Flowers from her Wreath and Placed them on the Heads of

THE Old Couple, When Each Flower Became a Golden Crown . . • '33

The Student Lived in the Garret ....■••••• ^i^

The Brownie Lived on the Ground Floor . . • • • • • • '3^

There the Little Brownie S.^t, Illumin.ated by the Burning House Opposite, Holding in his

Hands his Red Cap in which his Treasure Lay . . • ■ • • '4'

There Were Two Little Windows Opposite E.ach Other on the Roofs of the Houses . -144

Kay Managed to Get his Sledge Fastened to the Large One, and Away he Went with it . 147

The Prince Made a Pretty Caldron WITH Bells all Around it 1 76

The Maids of Honor Were so Taken L'p with Counting the Kisses that they did not Notice

THE Emperor ............. 1 79

"Oh, What a Miserable Creature I Am!" Cried the Princess ...... 182

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PACE

The Top could See the Ball Fi.ving High LJi' in the Air Like a Biro . . . . i 86

Far in the Forest Stood a Pretty Pine-Tree . . . . . . .192

The Folding Doors were Opened and a Crowd oe Children Rushed Into ihe Room ; the

Older People Followed in a More Dignified Manner . . . . . . 197

"The Will-o'-the-Wisi's are IN Town ! Take Care of Yourselves! " ..... 204

The Window Flew Open of itself, and an Old Woman Looked Right in A r the Man . 209

" 1 Had All THE Twelve New-Born Wii.L-o'-THE-Wisps IN MY Lap" . . . . ■ zij

A Duck was Sitting On her Nest to Hatch her Little Ducklings . . . . . 220

" Make H.^ste and Bow Your Heads to the Old Duck. She Is the Oldest of them All Here.

She Is of Spanish Blood!" . . . . . . . . . . . .223

" Peep, Peep!" Said the Youngster as he Rolled Out of the Shell .... 225

Things Got Worse and Worse, and the Poor Duckling was Chased and Bitten by them All . 226

Suddenly a Terrible Dog, with his Tongue Hanging Out, Stood Right in Front of him . 227

In this House Lived an Old Woman with a Cat and a Hen . . . "What's This.?"
Asked the Woman. She could not See Well, and so she Belihed the Duckling Was a
Fat Duck 229

The Duckling had to Keep his Legs Constantly Moving, So Th.vf the Hole in the Ice

should not Close Up . . . . . . ■ • • • ■ • 231

"Only Kill Me!" Said the Poor Creature as he Bent his Head Down .Against the Surface of

the Water . . . . . . . . . • • • • -^33

It Was a Wonderful Trunk! As Soon as you Pressed the Lock the Trunk could Fly . 236

The King, the Queen, and the Whole Court Were Taking Tea with the Princess . . 239

He Put the Fireworks on his Trunk and Flew up into the Air with it. Crack ! Off Went the

Fireworks, Spurting in All Directions ....•■••• 243

On the Last House in a Little Village a Pair of Storks had Built their Nest . . .246

Father Stork Came Flying Home Fvery Day with Nice Frogs, Little Snakes, and All Kinds of

Dainties for Storks .......••••• 249

" Now You Must Learn to Fly! " Said Mother Stork One Day . . . -251

The Princess had Publicly Announced that She would MarrV the Person who could Speak

Best for Himself ............. 256

"Hullo!" Shouted Silly Hans. "Just Look what I have Found!" and he Showed Them a

Dead Crow he had Found . . . • • . . • . .258

"Here's my Cooking .Apparatus," Said Silly Hans, and so he Pulled Out the Old Wooden

Clog and Placed the Crow On it ......... . 259

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

The Princes were Turned into Eleven Beautiful Wild Swans ...... 264

Elisa Saw her Brothers Standing Round her. Arm in Arm, While the Sea Dashed Against

THE Rock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

Elisa Saw a Palace Almost a Mile Long, with One Colonnade Daringly Piled Above Another 273

There, on One of the Largest Tombstones, Elisa Saw Some Uglv Witches Busy Taking off

THEIR Rags .............. 277

Eleven Wild Swans came Flying and Settled Down Around her on the Cart, Flapping thei

Large Wings .............. 281

The Farmer Changed his Horse for a Cow, and So On Down to a Bag of Rotten Apples . 284

•' Shall We Have A Bet.'" Said the Englishman to the Farmer, " W'e Have Gold by the Barrel!" 287

" Well, Now I Must Kiss You!" Said the Woman; "Thank You, My Own Husband,"

AND She Kissed him Right on the Mouth ......... 290

Round the Corner in the Next Street Stood an Old, Old House ..... 294

" Thank You for the Tin Soldier, My Little Friend!" Said the Old Man, " And Thanks for

Coming to See Me "............ 297

In the Evening a Carriage Stopped at the Door, Into which They Put the Old Man's Coffin 301

In the Middle of the Flower Sat a Tiny Little Girl ....... 308

The Toad Took the Walnut Shell in which Thumbeline was Sleeping . . . .310

The Old Toad Courtesied to Thumbeline and Said, " Here Is My Son ! " . . . 31c

He Flew Up With her Into a Tree . . . . . . . • 3 ' '

The Mole had Dug a Passage from his House to theirs, and the Field-Mouse and Thumbeline

HAD Permission TO Take THEIR Walks There . . . . . . . . 313

The Field-Mouse Hired Four Spiders to Spin and Weave, and the Mole Came Every Evening

ON A Visit . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 3 ' 5

Thumbeline Seated Herself on the Swallow's Back, and Then the Bird Flew High Up in the

Air with her . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

Such a Storm has Never Raged in Our Day . . . . . . . . .320

The People Shouted and Cheered Still More When the Harlequin Came on the Scaffolding and

Made Faces at them . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Close to Them Stood Another Figure, an Old Chinaman who could Nod his Head . . 328

They Reached the Top of the Chimney, Where They Sat down and Looked Around them. Far

Out Into the Wide World . . . . . . . . . . . 332

Nobody in the Whole World Knows so Many Stories as Daddy Dustman . . . .336

There Were Two Men in a Town who Had the Same Name . . . . . . 354

xiv

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

ACI

E OK THH Sea Li\E THE MtRMtN AND THE Mermaids

.■ TO Make Greater Headway; Large Clouds were Gatherinx

; AN

IN(

i were Seen. — The Little Mermaid Now Understood that THt

; Shi

Little Claus Climbed Up to the Top of the Shed, VV'hence He could See Into the Room . 356

The Innkeeper Threw the Mead Rk^ht Into the Dead Woman's Face, and She Fell Backward

IN the Cart ............. 36 1

Down Below the Surface ok the Sea Li\e the Mermen and the Mermaids .... 374

Flashes of Lightn
Was in Danger

There the Sea-Witch was Sitting, While a Toad was Eating Out of her Mouth and the

\\'ater-Snakes WERE Crawling Over her Bosom ........ 387

There is a Hen who has Plucked out all her Feathers for the Sake of the Cock ! . . 398

The Goose Jumped from the Dish with Knife and Fork in its Back ..... 404

She Lighted a New Match. Then She was Sitting under a Beautiful Christmas Tree, with

Thousands of Candles Burning upon the Green Branches ..... 407

The Weather was Sharp and Frosty, the Sky Glittered with Sparkling Stars . . .410

They were Keeping New Year's Eve, and were Drinking Success to the New Year . . 412

Then a Lady Stepped Out of the Coach. " Miss May," She Said, Announcing Herself 415

"We Shall Soon Reach the Garden of Paradise," Said the East Wind .... 420

Then the Fairy of Paradise .Appeared. She Was Young and Beautiful, and was .Accompanied

BY the Most Beautiful Maidens .......••■ 429

There She Lay, .Already Asleep, and Looking as Beautiful as Only the Fairy in the Garden

OF Paradise can Look . . . . . . ■ - • • • • +.i3

By the Shore of the Great Belt Stands an Old Mansion with Thick Red Walls . . 438

A Fire was Always Burning on the Hearth ; the Door to his Chamber was Locked, ^nd

There He Worked for Days and Nights ......... 443

They Walked Along the Road Where They Used to Drive in their Carriage; Now They

Went Forth with their Father as Beggars ........ 447

All the Tin Soldiers were Made From the Same Old Tin Spoon . .... 454

A Little Lady was Standing Right Outside the Open Gate of the Castle with Both her

Arms Outstretched ............ 457

"Stop Him! Stop Him!" Shouted the Rat, Gnashing his Teeth, "He has n't Shown his

Over in the Corner the Old Clock was Whirring Round ...... 462

On the Other Side of the Lake Stood a \\'onderful House, — It was Death's Large Hot-
House ............... 467

The E.mperor was so Fond of New Clothes that He Spent .All his Money on Dresses . . 472

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PACE

Then the Emperor Went in the Procession Under the Splendid Canopv. " But He has n't

Got Anything On! " Cried a Little Child . .475

"It's so Delightfully Cold !" Said the Snow Man ....... 480

"Go! Go!" Barked the Old Yard-Dog. The Sun will Soon Teach You to Run. I Noticed

That with Your Predecessor Last Year " ......... 483

They Were the Portraits of the Peddler and the Goose-Girl, from whom the Whole

Family Descended ............ 488

It Was a Wonderful Flute! It was Heard All Over the Mansion, in the Garden, in the

Forest, and for Many Miles Into the Country . . . . . . -495

The Snails Live on Burdock Leaves, and That Is Why Burdocks were Planted . . . 500

" I AM Glad We Have Our Own House," Said the Mother Snail, " .And the Little One has

Also his " . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502

The Shadow of the Stranger Fell Upon the Wall of the House Opposite . 506

He Then Opened the Door, and There Stood Before him Such an Exceedingly Thin Person

That He Felt Quite Uncomfortable . . . . . . . . .511

The Princess and the Shadow Stepped Out Upon the Balcony to Show Themselves and to Hfar

the People Shout " Hurrah! " Once More . . . . . . . 51;

INTRODUCTION

Such an original species of writing as that in which Andersen excelled
does not burst full-hlown upon the world. It is the result of many ex-
periments, many accidents, even, perhaps, of some hlunderings. Andersen
did not set out deliberately to be a teller of fairy stories, much less did he
expect or desire to be mainly known as the composer of these smaating,
as he called them, of these trirfes or bagatelles. He set out in life intend-
ing to be a serious poet, a writer ot five-act dramas, a novelist of passion
and society. Almost to the very last he persisted in believing that the
critics and the public had made a mistake, and that his ambitious works,
in the conventional branches of the profession, were what he would really
li\e by. " Don't you think," he said to me in a sort of coaxing whisper,
toward the very close of his life — "don't you think that people will
really come back to ' The Two Baronesses ' when these smaating have
had their day?" "The Two Baronesses" is an old niwel ot Andersen's,
which I had not read, so I could only bend mv eves politely. But that
was in i 874, and people have neither come back to " The Two Baron-
esses " nor forgotten "The Ugly Duckling" and "The Snow Queen."

Unwilling as he was to admit it, however, Andersen could not fail to
be aware that the Fairy Tales were his real possession and treasure-trove.
In 1862 he deigned to recollect how these stories came into existence,
and his notes, — which I do not happen to have seen translated or even
referred to, — although tantalizingly scanty, are very valuable. He put
back the germ of his fairy-story telling to the year 1829, when he pub-
lished, along with a little collection of his poems, a tale in prose called
■' The Dead Man." This was a treatment of one oi the disquieting,
half-humorous, half-melancholy legends which Andersen had heard when
in his childhood he haunted the Odense workhouse and its old women.
He deliberately tried to tell it in the tone of Musaus, a German author of
the eighteenth century, who began by being an imitator of Richardson,
and who ended as the first man to collect and retell, after a somewhat
over-genteel fashion, the folk-tales of Germany. Musaus possessed no
great talent, but it is interesting to see him, who set the Brothers Grimm
and all the multitude of modern folk-lorists in motion on the one hand,
giving the start-word in a very different direction to Andersen. For

INTRODUCTION

"The Dead Man" — which was quite a faikire — was the story which,
entirely rewritten, appeared in 1831 as "The Traveling Companion."

In Andersen's account ot" his journey in the Harz Mountains, pub-
lished in 1831, there is to be found a story of" an old king, who believed
that he had never heard a lie, and therefore promised that the man who
should first successfully tell him a falsehood should receive the princess,
his daughter, and half his royal kingdom. Here the fairy-tale tone is
clearly perceptible, but it has not yet discovered its form or its final
character. But in 1835 there appeared a little pamphlet, — the originality
and importance of which it would be difficult to appraise too highly, —
"Fairy Tales Told for Children." This precious pamphlet of sixty-one
pages contained four tales, " The Tinder-Box," " Little Claus and Big
Claus," "The Princess and the Pea," and "Little Ida's Flowers." These
four stories are included in the present collection, and the reader may
find it interesting to detach these, with a view to observing what we
may call Andersen's primitive manner in the evolution of a fairy tale.

There was one peculiarity in these stories which startled a Danish ear,
and led at first to almost universal reproof by the critics, and neglect by
cultivated readers. Like the other literatures of Europe, and more than
some, — more than our own, for instance, — the poetry and prose of Den-
mark were held at that time in the bondage of the proprieties. An author
still had to consider not merely what he should, but also what he should
not say. There was little attempt to reproduce, even in comedy, the
actual daily speech ot' citizens, but something more polished, more
rhetorical, more literary, in fact, was put into the lips of even vulgar
persons before they could be permitted to speak in public. It would not
be easy to make an Englishman or a Frenchman understand how startlingly
lax and puerile the conversations in these little stories of Andersen's ap-
peared; perhaps a German would realize it more. It was the first time
that children and uneducated people of the lower middle class had been
allowed to speak in Danish literature, and their naivetes and their innocent
picturesqueness were at first an absolute scandal. Conceive what Johnson
and Burke would have thought of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,"
and you have a parallel to the effect oi "Little Claus and Big Claus"
upon academic Denmark.

But in this first typical specimen there were differences to be observed.
"The Tinder-Box" and "The Princess and the Pea" are not of the
same class as "Little Ida's Flowers." Nothing of its kind could be more
exquisite than the last, and Andersen never excelled its lightness and
brightness of fancy, its intimate recognition of the movement of a child's
imagination. Only a great poet could have written it — only the great
pt)et who subsequently wrote so many other pure fairy tales of the same
enchanting innocence and ebullience. But that poet needed not to have
had Andersen's peculiar training. .^s a matter of fact, "Little Ida's

INTRODUCTION

Flowers" was composed in consequence ot liearing the small daughter of
Thiele make remarks about the plants in the Botanic (iardens of Copen-
hagen ; remarks the delicious artlessness ot which so delighted Andersen
that he noted them down, and reproduced them in the setting which we
all know so well. This is an example ot the side of Andersen's genius on
which he most closely approaches Lewis Carroll.

If from this lovely fantasia we turn to the other three stories, we see
something ditferent, something more entirely original, and suggestive of a
more surprising departure. These also were suggested to Andersen by
matters lurking in his recollection. He never, perhaps, absolutely in-
vented the material of his tales. But these were legends the crude germ
or kernel oi' each of which he had heard long ago, in his unparalleled
childhood — fragments of the prejudice and ignorance and mother-wit of
the untaught peasant mind. These were atoms of folk-lore left sticking
to his memory from the days when he went weeding in the garden of the
lunatic asylum, or strolled along among the hop-pickers at Bogense. These
worn tragments ot a primitive age, shapeless and unsuggestive to any less
penetrating imagination than his, Andersen redeemed from their low uses,
and clothed again with his fancy and his humanity.

The next little collection, that of 1836, contained three, and that ot
1837 only two stories. It appeared in these that Andersen had become a
little shy of his old, direct folk-lore. He had put forth his discovery, and
the world had proved averse to it. Here was "The Traveling Com-
panion," in its remodeled form, which, indeed, was actual folk-lore; but
the others belonged to the modern, the invented, or, as we English may
roughly call it, the Alice section of the stories. "The Naughty Boy"
came out oi' Anacreon; "The Emperor's New Clothes," remarkable as
showing the tirst complete development of Andersen's satiric irony, from
Spanish sources. In "Thumbeline" and "The Little Mermaid" we
have pure fairy tales, works of literary fancy, unattached to any genuine
folk-lore. The last mentioned, however, was the earliest of all Andersen's
tales to become widely popular. It was in "The Wild Swans," of 1838,
that he tirst dared to come back to actual Danish legend. By this time he
had begun to conquer his public, and he now went on writing as it hap-
pened to please him best. Oddly enough, he himself was never perfectly
converted. To the last, and in the presence of his immortal little master-
pieces, he continued to be slightly scandalized at the liberties he had
persuaded himself to take with classical Danish.

Perhaps there never existed a more remarkable instance of the adapta-
tion of extraordinary circumstances to the purposes of a unique genius
than was seen in the case of the early training of Andersen. His childish
days had been spent in strange places, in still stranger company. He must
have been about live years of age when he went with his parents to dine with
the jailer of the common prison in Odense. Two prisoners waited at table,

INTRODUCTION

but Hans Christian could eat nothing ; his brain was full of all the stories
of robbers and dungeons and enchanted castles that he had ever heard of,
and he had to be put to bed. But when he was left alone, he character-
istically tells us, he forgot to be frightened, for he turned the whole inci-
dent into a wonderful fairy tale. How he played about in the corridors
of the madhouse, and how a beautiful lunatic nearly frightened him to
death, is well known ; but this is an incident which could have happened,
one is inclined to say, to no poet but Andersen. He has given us a most
curious account of the long hours he used to spend in the old women's
ward of the poorhouse at Odense, and how he offered to sketch the
internal economy of any one of the ancient ladies, with chalk, on the
door of the room. With these and other ingenuities he so diverted them
that they declared with one voice that so clever a child was not long for
this world. But, in their turn, to this ignorant, freakish, wild little boy,
the old women told stories, legends of troll and water-sprite, ghost and
goblin and wizard, such as in those davs the uninstructed imagination of
the Scandinavian peasant teemed with.

When the child was eleven, his father, the gentle, consumptive young
cobbler, fell deadly sick. Already Andersen had gained a reputation as a
clever, uncanny boy'/" he is cracked, like his grandfather," people said in
Odense); accordingly when his father was very ill, his mother sent him
out at night to walk by the river, " for," she said, " if thy father is to die
this time, thou wilt meet his ghost.^' The poor frightened child came
home, having seen nothmg, and his mother's superstition was assuaged ;
but the third day after that her husband did die. Little Andersen and his
inother watched with the corpse, and all night long a cricket chirped ;
till at last the mother sat up and cried to it, " You need not call to him ;
he is dead ! ' In this amazing old-world atmosphere of terror and
spiritual bewilderment was the delicate and nervous brain of this great
modern poet nurtured, and we must not forget it if we would understand
in what manner he was prepared for the composition of the Fairy Tales.

It may be said that in his address to his imaginary audience Andersen
never advanced beyond what he recalled of his own childhood in those
loose, undisciplined and fruitful years when it was doubtful whether he
would become a tailor's apprentice or a super at a provincial theater. It
is to what he recollected of his own dimlv-luminous mind before he set out
for Copenhagen, in 1819, that he addressed, in later life, the ingenuous
language of his tales. Hence he uses the simplest words, the most con-
crete images, is occupied with the rudest tastes and the humblest am-
bitions. If he wishes to conjure up power, it is always in the person of
an old king, generally a peasant in intelligence and experience, but
known to be a king by his wearing a golden crown and an ermine robe,
■and by his carrying a scepter. So, if he wishes to suggest wealth, he
uses none of its symbols or evidences, but quantities of bullion — bars of

INTRODUCTION

gold, or bags of minted money. The child's want of clear distinction
between the seen and the unseen, the experienced and the impossible ;
its naive acceptance of animals and rlt)wers, and even of the winds and the
stars and the inanimate domestic objects around it, as creatures allied to
itselt, with which it may be in mutual comprehension, the dullest of
which, in tact, is more in sympathy with it than an ordinary " grown-up
person," — all this was realized by Andersen with a clairvoyance which
becomes almost supernatural when we recollect that no previous writer
had ever seriously dreamed ot it, and that this was a little chamber of
literature into which even Shakspere had never forced his way.

It has taken the world sixty years to become perfectly assured that
Andersen, in his own best line, is an author of the very highest originality,
that — given the particular genre — he is as great in it as Milton or — shall
we say? — Moliere in his. Nothing less than this can be claimed for
Andersen, — absolute supremacy in his own special field. Only one man
perceived this fact, however, at first. This was the Dane, Johan Ludvig
Heiberg, the acutest critic of Northern P^urope in those years, who, though
hitherto not well affected to Andersei,i's writings, told him bluntly as soon
as he had read "The Princess and the Pea," that here he had struck at
last into the road that leads to immortality. But the excellent Frederika
Bremer could only wish that "The Little Mermaid" had been brought
down to the level of a young child's apprehension, and most of what were
considered the "best judges" of that age were shocked at the humor which
gives the very salt of life to the fairy tale, which, without it, is apt to be a
little mawkish. Andersen's autobiography is full, perhaps over full, of
instances of want of appreciation of his writings by those from whose praise
he anticipated the most pleasure. But the children soon took up the mat-
ter themselves, and paid him an abundant and -enthusiastic devotion which
dragged their elders along with it.^

There can be little doubt that one peculiarity of Andersen's imagina-
tion especially endeared him to the minds of the children. A child is
like a savage in its calm acceptance ot incongruous elements, in the ease
with which it passes over essential difficulties of tone and plane. Andersen's
art consists largely of the adroitness with which he blends together ideas
which in the real world cannot be conceived of in combination or even in
relation. He is unique, for instance, in his mingling of images from the
Christian religion and from primitive forms of superstition. When "The
Traveling Companion," for example, opens, Johannes is at the parish
church, and the people are singing a hymn. But in the tower of the
old church a brownie or nisse is squatting, and it waves its red cap at him.
He follows the bells through the forest, and with a good conscience enters
another little church, listening to the word of God. This does not pre-

1 For the facts of Andersen's life, the reader may be referred to Mr. R. Nisbet Bain's excellent
"Biography," 1895, a work collected entirely from Danish sources.

INTRODUCTION

vent him from presently enjoying the gambols of the elves in the wood-
land. He is a good little modern boy, living in a quiet parish, among
God-fearing people, but the mountain opens before him and he enters
without surprise the great hall where the king of the trolls sits under a
canopy of pink spiders' webs, and listens to the choir of great black grass-
hoppers playing on Jews' harps. But he is the same sober Christian lad
as ever, and in due time overthrows all his enemies bv his honesty and
sagacity. Here the mixture of spiritual ideas is bewildering, if we only
persuade ourselves to realize it, and involves an incongruity which no other
teller of fairy stories allows himself to undertake. In one of Grimm's
stories, for instance, or of Asbjornsen's, we have trolls, and wicked prin-
cesses, and imps with enormous noses, but they are not mixed up w ith the
singing of hymns in church and preparing for a first communion. But in
the mind of a child this or any incongruity is possible, and the mind of
Andersen was exactly like that of a child. Hence, even when his topsy-
turvy world is most startling, we are never scandalized. Probably no one
was ever found to accuse Andersen of profanity.

A somewhat similar moral incongruity would not be quite so easy to
condone, if we were inclined to take a very high ground. The soldier
in "The Tinder-Box" cuts off" the head of the old woman and steals her
treasures with shocking ingratitude, yet with complete impunity. His
ultimate good fortune even springs directly from his crime. The behavior
of the merchant's son to the Turkish princess in "The F^lying Trunk"
was deplorable, but Andersen does not seem to regret it. Little Claus can
hardly be said to live up to any recognized standard of morals in his rela-
tion to Big Claus. But all this is very characteristic of the childish
instinct. Life to a child is a phantasmagoria, and thanklessness and rapine
and murder are amusing shadows which the unsubstantial human figures
throw as they dance in the flicker of the firelight. It is precisely the
absence of any priggishness in this respect, and the daring with which he
sets himself against all the obvious school-room axioms of conduct that
help to make up the astounding fascination of Andersen. His very sav-
agery endears him to the little innocent barbarians of the nursery.

It was a favorite exercise with .\ndersen to read aloud his fairy tales,
soon after they were written, to some fortunate friend. The number of
those who can 'say that they have enjoyed this privilege must now be
growing small. In England it must be extremely small, for Andersen's
latest visit to this country was paid in 1857. The present writer, there-
fore, is tempted to believe that there is some little rarity, at least, in the
experience which he is able to relate, and the more so from a particular
which will be presently mentioned. Only on a single occasion did Hans
Christian Andersen read to me one of his unpublished fairy tales, and,
indeed, I had not the honor of knowing him until he had given to the
world the main bulk of his productions. But in the summer of i8-'2 I

INTRODUCTION

had the happiness of listening to "The Cripple." At that time Andersen
had a suite of rooms in Copenhagen, but he was much more frequently
to be found at the mansion of some friends just outside the fortifications,
called Rolighed t)r " Quietude." This house had been the residence ot
several interesting people, among others ot no less a person than Orsted.
It was now owned by a wealthy and liberal merchant, Mr. Moritz Mel-
chior, who had rebuilt it, and who had turned it into a miniature of
Rosenborg Castle, with a tower, and with high balconies overlooking the
Sound.

In this house Andersen was so constantly welcome that a portion ot
it — three or four charming rooms — was set apart entirely for his service,
and he came and went in them without constraint. " Rolighed " is the
subject of Andersen's latest poem, in which he savs : —

"My home of homes, where behind the slope of elder-bushes
My life regained its sunshine and my harp its tone.
To thee I bring with gratitude this blithe song ot mine ! "

It was here, in his bright room open to the east, with the long caravan of
ships going by in the Sound below, " like a Hock ot wild swans," as he
said, with the white towns of Malmo and Landskrona sparkling on the
Swedish coast, and the sunlight falling on Tycho Brahe's island, that
Andersen proposed to recite to me a new tairy tale. He read in a low
voice, which presently sank to almost a hoarse whisper ; he read slowly, out
of mercy to my imperfect apprehension, and as he read he sat beside me,
with his amazingly long and bony hand — a great brown hand, almost
like that of a man of the woods — grasping my shoulder. As he read,
the color of everything, the twinkling sails, the sea, the opposite Swedish
coast, the burnished sky above, kindled with sunset. It seemed as it
Nature herself were flushing with ecstasy at the sound of Andersen's voice.
When he had finished, he talked to me a little about the story, and
confided to me that he intended this, " The Cripple," to be his last.
He was very much pleased with it ; he thought it summed up all his
methods, and that in a certain sense it presented symbolically his lesson,
his imaginative message, to mankind. The reader may -not recollect this
storv, since it is far from being the best known of Andersen's tales ; nor
is it really one of the most characteristic, for there is nothing supernatural
or fantastic about it. It has, therefore, not been included in this collec-
tion. It presents a little complicated episode of humble manners. A
• gardener and his wife have five children, of whom the eldest, a fine boy,
has the misfortune to be a bed-ridden cripple. The parents, worthy,
narrow people, live engrossed in their materialistic interests, and when
some one from whom a present is expected gives the cripple a book, they
ungraciously say to one another, " He won't get fat on that." Hut it is

INTRODUCTION

a book of fairy tales, and the boy's whole spiritual life is awakened by the
vistas these open for him in every direction. He finds two simple and
direct parables, which he reads over and over again to his parent>, and
their hearts, too, are humanized and melted. Finallv, a little dark bird,
like the Emperor of China's nightingale, is presented to him, and in a
supreme nervous effort to save its life the cripple regains the use of his
own limbs. In this story Andersen intended to sum up the defense of
fairy tales and of their teller. It was to be a sort of apologia for his
whole poetical career, and he told me that it would be the latest of his
writings. In this matter his mind afterward changed, for later in the
same year, 1872, he composed " Auntie Toothache," inspired by his own
sufferings, and it is with this story that the long series of his tairy tales
ultimately closed with the original.

He gradually realized that his work was done. In a most pathetic
letter to me, on New Year's Day, 1875, ^^ admitted that we must look
for nothing more, that his bag of magic was emptied. After a long
illness, however, his physical health seemed in large measure restored, and
at the completion of his seventieth year, great festivities were arranged at
Copenhagen and at Odense. The whole nation, from the Roval family
down to the peasants in the country villages, kept Andersen's birthdav as a
holiday, and this attention soothed and pleased him. But his vital energv
was now fast ebbing. He began to suffer great torture from an obscure
complaint which puzzled the doctors. It was interesting that when he
was dying Andersen expressed a curiosity to study the ancient Indian
fables which are identified with the mythical name of Bidpai, and the
death-bed of the greatest modern fabulist was strewn with translations and
commentaries of his earliest fellow-craftsman of Hindustan. At last, on the
4th of August, 1875, he fell asleep in the room at Rolighed, where we
were sitting when he read me "The Cripple" three years before. And
out of that peaceful slumber he never woke again. His laborious and
beautiful life had been the most enchanting of his fairy tales. It closed at
last in honor and serenity. It will probably be centuries before Europe
sees again a man in whom the same peculiar qualities ot imagination are
blended. She can never see one more blameless in his life, or inspired by
an aim more delicate and guileless.

Edmund Gosse.

THE NIGHTINGALE

t >"

THE NIGHTINGALE WAS INDEl-.l) A (.KEAT SUCCES

THE NIGHTINGALE

IN China, ycu know, the emperor is a Cliinanian, and all those he has
about him are Chinamen. The stt)ry I am going to tell you hap-
pened many years ago, but just on that account it is worth hearing,
before it is forgotten. The emperor's palace was the most magnifi-
cent in the world, built entirely of the finest porcelain. It was very ct)stlv,
but St) fragile that it would hardly stand being touched, so one had to be
caret ul.

In the garden were to be seen the most wonderful flowers ; to the most
beautiful of them were fastened silver bells, which tinkled all the time, so
that no one should pass by without noticing the flowers. Indeed, every-
thing in the emperor's garden was cleverly thought out ; and it was so
big that the gardener himself did not know where it ended. If you kept
on walking, you came to a most beautiful forest, with lofty trees and deep
lakes. The forest went right down to the deep blue sea ; great ships could
sail right in under its branches, and in these hved a nightingale, which
sang so exquisitely that even the poor fisherman, who had so many other
things to attend to, would rest on his oars and listen to him when he went
out at night to pull in his nets. "How beautiful it is!" he would say;
but he had to look after his nets, and forgot the bird. Yet, when he was
singing again next night, and the fisherman came there, he said the same
thing: " How beautiful it is ! "

Visitors came from all parts of the world to the emperor's city, and
admired it, as well as the palace and the garden ; but when they came to
hear the nightingale, they all said : " He is the best of all ! "

And on their return home they spoke of all they had seen, and the
learned wrote many books about the city, the palace, and the garden, but
they did not forget the nightingale, which they praised beyond everything;
and those who could write poetry wrote the most beautiful poems, all about
the nightingale in the forest by the deep blue sea.

These books went all over the world, and at last some of them reached
the emperor. He sat in his golden chair and read and read ; every
moment he nodded his approval, for it pleased him to read the splendid
descriptions of the citv, the palace, and the garden. " But the nightingale
is the best of all!" said the books.

THE NIGHTINGALE

"What's this?" said the emperor, "the nightingale! I don't know
anything at all about him ! Is there such a bird in my empire, and, fancy !
in my garden, too. I have never heard of him. To think one has to find
out such things from books."

And so he called his chamberlain, who was such a grand personage
that when any one inferior to himself in rank ventured to speak to him or
ask him a question, he only answered " P," and that really did not mean
anything.

"There is, I hear, a most remarkable bird here, called a nightingale!"
said the emperor; "they say he is the best thing in mv great empire.
Why have I never been told anything about him?"

"I have never heard him mentioned before," said the chamberlain; "he
has never been presented at court !"

" It is my wish that he shall appear here this evening and sing before
me!" said the emperor. "It seems the whole world knows what I
possess, and I know nothing about him!"

"I have never heard him mentioned before," said the chamberlain; "I

shall look for him, I shall find him !"

But where was he to be found? The chamberlain ran up and down all
the staircases, through the halls and corridors ; not one of those he met
had heard of the nightingale; and the chamberlain ran back to the emperor
again, and said it must all be a fable, invented by those who wrote the
book. "Your Imperial Majesty must not believe all that is written. It is
fiction, or what is called the black art!"

"But the book in which I have read it," said the emperor, "has been
sent me by the great and mighty Emperor of Japan, and it cannot
therefore be a falsehood. I will hear the nightingale! He must be here
this evening! He shall have my most gracious patronage. And if he does
not come, the whole of the court shall ha\c their stomachs punched alter
they have had their supper! "

"Tsing-pe!" said the chamberlain, and again he ran up and down all
the staircases, and through all the halls and corridors ; and half the court
ran after him, for they did not like the idea of having their stomachs
punched.

And inquiries were made right and left after the wonderful nightingale
which all the world knew of, but of which the court knew nothing.

At last they came across a poor little girl in the kitchen. She
said: "Oh, yes! the nightingale! I know him well. How he can sing!
Every evening they let me take home some leavings from the table for
my poor sick mother, who lives down by the shore; and when I feel
tired on my way back, and rest in the forest, I hear the nightingale
sing. He brings tears to my eyes; it is just as if mv mother was kissing
me! "

" My little kitchen-maid," said the chamberlain, " I will get you a

THE NIGHTINGALE

permanent place in the kitchen,
and permission to see the em-
peror eat, it" only you can take ns
to the nightingale. He has been
commanded to appear at court
this evening."

And so they all set out for
the forest, where the nightingale
used to sing, and half the court
went with them. As they walked
along a cow began lowing.

" Ah ! " said one of the cour-
tiers, " there he is ! What won-
derful strength for such a small
creature to possess ! I have cer-
tainly heard him before ! "

" No, that 's the cows lowing ! "
said the little kitchen-maid. " We
are still far from the place."

Some frogs now began croak-
ing in a pool.

"Beautiful!" said the palace-
dean ; " now I hear him ; it sounds
just like tiny church bells! "

" No, that 's the frogs ! " said
the little kitchen-maid. " But I
think we shall soon hear him ! "

just then the nightingale be-
gan to sing.

"There he is ! " said the little
girl. " Listen, listen ! and there
he sits!" and she pointed at a
little gray bird up among the
branches.

"Is it possible? "said the
chamberlain ; " I never imagined
he would be like that! How
common he looks ! He must
have lost his color at seeing so
many grand folks here ! "

"Little nightingale! " cried
the little kitchen-maid quite
loudly, " our gracious emperor
before him."

would like so much to hear you sing

6 THE NIGHTINGALE

" With the greatest pleasure ! " said the nightingale, and began to sing
in good earnest.

" It sounds like crystal bells," said the chamberlain ; " and how he does
use his little throat ! It is most remarkable that we have never heard him
before. He will be a great success at court ! "

" Shall I sing once more before the emperor r " said the nightingale,
believing that the emperor was present.

" My excellent little nightingale ! " said the chamberlain, " I have great
pleasure in commanding you to appear at a court festival this evening, where
you shall enchant his Imperial Majesty with your charming singing ! "

" It sounds best in the greenwood," said the nightingale ; but he was
quite willing to go when he heard that the emperor wished it.

At the palace everything had been polished and smartened up. The
walls and floors, which were all of porcelain, shone in the light of many
thousands of golden lamps. The most beautiful flowers with tinkling bells
were placed along the corridors ; there was such a running to and fro, and
such a draught, that all the bells were set tinkling, until at last one could
not hear one's selt speak.

In the middle of the great hall, where the emperor sat, a golden perch
had been fixed, and on this the nightingale was to sit. The whole court
was present, and the little kitchen-maid had got permission to stand behind
the door, for she was now a real kitchen-maid by title. All were dressed
in their best finery, and all were looking at the little gray bird, at which the
emperor was nodding his head.

And the nightingale sang so beautifully that tears came into the
emperor's eyes, and rolled down his cheeks, and then the nightingale sang
still more beautifully ; his song went straight to every one's heart, and the
emperor was so happy, and said that the nightingale should have his
golden slipper to wear round his neck. But the nightingale declined the
honor with thanks ; he had already received sufficient reward.

" I have seen tears in the emperor's eyes," the nightingale said ; " that
is the greatest reward you can give me. An emperor's tears possess
wonderful virtue. Heaven knows I have been sufficiently rewarded ! "
And so he sang again with his sweet, blessed voice.

"That's the most lovely coquetry I know of!" said the ladies all
around ; and so they took water in their mouths so that they might make a
warbling sound when anybody spoke to them, believing that they also were
nightingales ; even the footmen and chamber-maids made it known that
they too were satisfied — and that is saying a great deal, for they are the
most difficult of all to please. Yes, the nightingale was indeed a great
success.

He was now to remain at court, to have his own cage, with liberty
to take a walk twice a day, and once at night. He had twelve footmen to
attend upon him, all of wht)m had a silk ribbon which was fastened to his

THE NIGHTINGALE

leg, and which they all held tightly. There was no pleasure at all in that
kind of outing.

The whole city was talking of the wonderful hird, and when two of
the inhabitants met, one would merely say " Nightin — ," and the other
" gale," and then they sighed and understood each other. ^'es, the
children of eleyen buttermen were named after him, but not one of them
could sing a note.

One day a large parcel arrived for tlie empert)r, and on the outside was
written: "Nightingale."

" Here we have a new book about our celebrated bird ! " said the
emperor; but it was not a book, it was a small mechanical toy, which lay in
a box — an artificial nightingale, which had been made to look exactly like
the living one, but was set with diamonds, rubies, and sapphires. As soon
as the artificial bird had been wound up, it began to sing one of the songs
of the real bird, while the tail moved up and down, sparkling with silver
and gold. Around its neck hung a small ribbon on which was written :
The Enipt'ror of "Jupan' s nightingaU' is poor compared with the Emperor of
CJii?his.'^

"It is beautitul ! " exclaimed all; and he who had brought the artificial
bird received at once the title ot "Imperial Nightingale-Carrier-in-Chiet."

"Now they must sing together! What a duet it will be!"

And so they had to sing together; but they did not get on well, for
the real nightingale sang in his own way, while the artificial bird was
dependent upon its barrels.

"It 's not its fault," said the musical director; "it keeps time beauti-
fully, and sings quite in my style." So the artificial bird was to sing alone.
It had just as much success as the real bird, and then it was so much
prettier to look at; it glittered like diamond bracelets and brooches.

It sang the same piece thirty-three times over, and still it was not tired;
the audience would have liked to hear it from the beginning again, but the
emperor thought that the living nightingale ought also to sing a little —
but where was he? Nobody had noticed that he had flown out through the
open window, away into his green forest.

"But what 's the meaning of this?" said the emperor; and all the
courtiers began abusing the nightingale, saying he was a most ungrateful
creature.

"But we have the best bird after all!" they said; and so the artificial
bird had to sing again, and they heard the same piece tor the thirty-fourth
time, but still they did not know it, for it was rather diflicult to learn, and
the musical director was loud in his praises of the bird; nay, he even
protested that it was better than the real nightingale, not only as regards
its attire, and its many beautiful diamonds, but also with regard to its
internal arrangements.

" For you must know, ladies and gentlemen, and, above all, your

8 THE NIGHTINGALE

Imperial Majesty, that with the real nightingale you carr never be sure of
what is coming; but with the artificial bird everything has been arranged
beforehand. So what is coming, will come, and nothing else. Every-
thing can be accounted for; it may be ripped open and will show what
human thought and skill can do; you may see how the barrels are placed,
how they are worked, and how one thing is the result of another."

"That 's exactly what we have been thinking!" they all said. And the
musical director got permission to show the bird to the people on the
following Sunday. "They should also hear it sing," said the emperor. And
they heard it, and were as pleased as if they had got too merry on strong
tea, for that 's quite Chinese, you know. They all exclaimed, "Oh!" and
held up their forefingers and nodded their heads; but the poor fisherman,
who had heard the real nightingale, said: "It sounds pretty enough,
and it is very like the other; but there 's something wanting, I can't tell
exactly what!"

The real nightingale was banished from the land.

The artificial bird was placed on a silk cushion close to the emperor's
bed; all the presents which it had received, the gold and the precious stones,
lav round about it, and its title had been raised to "Singer of the Imperial
Toilet-table," to rank number One on the left side, for the emperor con-
sidered that the side nearest the heart was of most importance — for even an
emperor has his heart on the left side.

And the musical director wrote five-and-twenty volumes about the
artificial bird ; they were very learned and long, and full of the most
difficult Chinese words, and everybody said that they had read them and
understood them, for otherwise they would, of course, have been stupid,
and would then have had their stomachs punched.

In this way a whole year passed by; the emperor, the court, and all
the other Chinamen knew by heart every little note in the artificial bird's
song, but just on that account they liked it best; they could now join in
the song themselves, which they did. The boys in the street sang
" Ze-ze-ze ! Cluck-cluck-cluck!" and the emperor sang the same. — Yes,
it was really delightful !

But one evening, when the artificial bird was singing its best, and
the emperor lay in bed listening to it, something inside the bird went
" pop"; a spring had broken, and, " whir-r-r," round went all the wheels,
and then the music stopped.

The emperor jumped out of bed at once and called for his physician;
but how could he be of any help r Then they fetched the watchmaker,
and after a great deal of talking and a long and careful examination he got
the bird into something like order, but he said it must not be used so much,
for the pinions were so worn — and it was not possible to put in new ones —
that one could not be sure of the music. This caused a great deal of
sorrow in the land. Only once a year did they venture to let the

THE NIGHTINGALE 11

artificial bird sing, and that was almost too often ; but then the musical
director made a little speech, full of ditHcuIt words, and said it was just as
good as ever — and so it was, of course, just as good as ever.

Five years had passed, when the whole of the country was threatened
with a very great affliction, for the people were really fond of their
emperor, and now he was ill, and it was said he was not expected to live.

A new emperor had already been chosen, and the people stood outside
in the street and asked the chamberlain how it fared with their emperor.

" P ! " he said, and shook his head. The emperor lay pale and cold in
his large and gorgeous bed. .AH the court thought he was dead, and every
one ran off to greet the new emperor ; the footmen rushed out to gossip
about it, and the chamber-maids gave a great coffee-party at the palace.

All the floors of the halls and the corridors had been covered with
carpets, so that no footsteps should be heard, and therefore it was so
silent, so quiet there. But the emperor was not dead yet ; pale and stiff
he lay in his splendid bed, with the long velvet curtains and the heavy
golden tassels ; high above, a window stood open and the moon shone in
upon the emperor and the artificial bird.

The poor emperor could scarcely breathe ; he felt as if some one was
sitting on his chest. He opened his eyes, and then he saw it was Death,
who was sitting on his chest and had put on his golden crown, and held in
one hand the emperor's golden saber and in the other his gorgeous banner,
while round about were strange faces peering forth from among the folds
of the large velvet bed-curtains; some of them were horrible, others kind
and gentle-looking — they were the emperor's evil and good deeds, which
were looking at him, now that Death sat over his heart.

"Do you remember that.?" whispered one after the other. " Do you
remember that?" And then they told him of so many things that the
perspiration stood out on his brow.

"That I never knew!" said the emperor. "Music, music! The
big Chinese drum ! " he cried, " so that I may not hear all they say ! "

And they went on, while Death sat nodding just like a Chinaman to
everything they said.

"Music, music !" cried the emperor. "You blessed, little golden bird!
Sing, do sing ! I have given vou gold and precious things, I have mvself
hung mv golden slipper round your neck. Sing, do sing! "

But the bird remained silent; there was no one to wind it up, and it
could not sing until this was done; but Death kept on staring at the
emperor with his great hollow eyes, and everything was so still, so
terribly quiet around them.

Suddenly the most lovely song was heard close to the window ; it was
the little, living nightingale, which sat outside on a branch ; he had heard
of the emperor's illness, and had therefore come to sing to him of life and
hope ; and as he sang the specters grew paler and paler, the blood began to

THE NIGHTINGALE

course more and more rapidly through the emperor's weak body, and
Death himself listened and said: "Go on, you little nightingale, go on! "

"Yes, if you will give me that splendid golden saber! Yes, if you will
give me that costly banner ! Will you give me the emperor's crown ? "

And Death gave each of the precious things for a song, and still the
nightingale went on singing. He sang of the quiet churchyard, where
the white roses grow, where the elder-tree perfumes the air, and where
the fresh grass is moistened by the tears of those left behind ; then Death
began to long for his garden, and floated like a cold white mist out
through the window.

"Thanks, thanks!" said the emperor. "You heavenly little bird, I
knew you well ! I banished you from land and realm, and vet you
have driven away with your song the horrible visions from my bed, and
Death from my heart! HOw shall I reward you.?"

"You have rewarded me !" said the nightingale. " I drew tears from
your eyes the first time I sang before you ; I shall never forget that !
Those are the jewels that bring joy to a singer's heart; but go to sleep
now, and grow well and strong. I will sing to you."

And he sang — and the emperor fell into a sweet sleep; so gentle and
refreshing was that sleep.

The sun was shining in through the windows at him, when he awoke
hale and hearty; none of his servants had as yet returned, for they
thought he was dead, but the nightingale still sat and sang.

"You must stay with me always !" said the emperor. " ^'ou shall
only sing when you please, and the artificial bird I will break into a
thousand pieces."

THE NIGHTINGALE 13

"Do not do that!" said the nightingale. "It has done what it could.
Keep it as before. I cannot settle down and live in the palace ; let me
come when I like; I will then sit on the branch outside the window in
the evenings and sing to you, so that you can be happy and be inspired with
fruitful thoughts. I will sing to you about those who are happy and
about those who suffer; I will sing about the good and the evil around
you which are kept hidden from you, for the little song-bird flies far
around to the poor fisherman, to the peasant's roof, to every one, far away
from you and your court. I love your heart better than your crown, and
yet the crown has a fragrance of sanctity about it ! — I will come, I will
sing to you! — But one thing you must promise me."

"Everything!" said the emperor, as he stood there in his imperial
robes, which he had himself put on, pressing the golden saber to his heart.

" One thing I beg of you ! Do not tell any one that you have a little
bird that tells you everything, and then all will go still better with you! "

And then the nightingale flew away. The servants came in to look
after the dead emperor — yes, there they stood, and the emperor said :
" Good morning ! "

THE JUMPERS

THi: JUMPERS ARKIVK AT THIi KING'S PALACL.

THE JUMPERS

THE flea, the grasshopper, and the spring-goose' once wanted to see
which ot them could jump highest, and so they invited the whole
world and everybody else who might care to see that kind of
sport. When the three entered the room, all thought they were splendid
specimens of jumpers.

" Well, I '11 give my daughter to the one who jumps highest ! " said the
king; " for it would look so mean to let these people jump for nothing ! "
The flea stepped forward flrst ; he had such nice manners and bowed on
every side, for he had the blood of grand ladies in his veins, and had been
accustomed to associate only with human beings, which means a great deal.
Next came the grasshopper; he was certainly very much bigger, but
he bore himself fairly well for all that, and wore a green uniform, the one
he was born with. Moreover, as he said, he was connected with a very
old family in the land ot Egypt, and was highly esteemed here at home.

An old-fashioned tov t'ormerlv much used in Denmark. It is made from the breast-bone ot
and, with the aid of a peg, some string, and cobblers' wax, can be made to jump.
17

THE JUMPERS

He had been taken straight from the fields and put into a house of cards,
three storeys high, all made with court-cards, with the colored side turned
in; there were both doors and windows, all cut out in the waist of the
C;^een of Hearts. " I sing so well," he said," that, on hearing me, sixteen
native crickets, that had been chirping since they were born, but never
had a house of cards, fretted themselves even thinner than they were!"

Both the flea and the grasshopper were thus able to give a good account
of themselves, and saw no reason why they should not marry a princess.

The spring-goose did not say anything ; people said of him that he
thought all the more, and as the palace-dog only sniffed at him, it was a

guarantee that the spring-goose
was of good family. The old
alderman, who had got three
orders for holding his tongue,
assured them that he knew
the spring-goose pt)ssessed the
gift of prophesying ; one could
tell by his back, whether the
winter would be mild or severe,
and that was more than you could
see by the back of the man who
writes the almanacs.

"Well, I sha 'n't say any-
thing!" said tbc old king; "but
I generally go about and have
my own opinion of things."

Everything now depended
upon the jumping. The flea
jumped so high that no one could
see him, so they said he had not
jumped at all, which was rather
mean.
The grasshopper jumped only half as high, but he jumped right onto
the king's face, which, the king declared, was most disagreeable.

The spring-goose stood still a long time, thinking to himself; the
people at last began to believe that he could not jump at all.

" I only hope he is n't ill ! " said the palace-dog, and siiifl^ed at him
again, when — wh 'st ! with a jump, a little sideways, he sprang right into
the lap of the princess, who was sitting on a low, golden footstool.

Then the king said; "The highest jump is to jump at my daughter,
for that's just the clever part of it. It requires brains to get an idea like
that, and the spring-goose has shown that he has brains. He has a mind
of his own ! "

And so he got the princess.

the grasshoppiir ju.mi'kd right
king's face.

THE JUMPERS

" I jumped highest after all!" said the tiea. "But it doesn't matter I
Let her keep that stuck-up hit oi' a goose with the peg and the cohhlers'
wax! I jumped highest, anyhow; but I find it is necessary in this world to
have substance, if one is to be noticed!"

And so the flea went abroad and enlisted, and there they say he was
killed. The grasshopper settled down in a ditch just outside, and pondered
over the way things were really managed in this world, and he also said :
"Yes, substance is the thing, substance is the thing ! " And then he went
on singing his own melancholy ditty ; and it is from that we have taken
this story, which may not he true, although it is printed.

THE SPRING-GOOSE SPRANG RIGHT INTO THE PRINCESS S LAP.

THE TRAVELING COMPANION

JOIIANNKS I.AV ON MIS KNKKS 1!Y THE BED A^

FA I HERS HANI

THE TRAVELING COMPANION

POOR Johannes was in great distress, for his father was very ill and
was not expected to live. There was no one in the Httle room
but the two; the lamp on the table was on the point of gt'ing out,
and it was getting late in the evening.

"You have been a good son, Johannes," said the sick father; "God
will help you on in the world " ; and he looked at him with his mild,
earnest eyes, drew a deep breath and died — it seemed as if he had only
gone to sleep. But Johannes wept ; he had now no one dear to him in
the whole world, neither father nor mother, sister nor brother. Poor
Johannes ! He lay on his knees by the bed and kissed his dead father's
hand, and wept many bitter tears ; but at last his eyes closed and he fell
asleep with his head resting on the hard edge of the bedstead.

Then he dreamed a strange dream ; he saw how the sun and the moon
were courtesying to him and he saw his father hale and hearty again and
heard him laugh, as he always laughed, when he was in really good
humor. A beautiful maiden with a golden crown on her long, lovely
hair, held out her hand to Johannes, and his father said : " Do you see
what a lovely bride you have got ? She is the most beautiful in all the
world." Then he awoke and the beautiful vision vanished; his father lay
dead and cold on the bed and poor Johannes was left all by himself!

The following week the dead man was buried and Johannes walked
close behind the cotfin. He could no longer see the kind father who had
loved him so much ; he heard how they shoveled the earth down upon the
coffin, of which he could now only see the last corner, but the next shovel-
ful of earth which was thrown down into the grave hid that also from his
view, and then he felt as if his heart would break under the weight of his
great sorrow. Around him they were singing a hymn ; it sounded so
beautiful, and the tears came into his eyes ; he wept, and this was a relief
to him in his distress. The sun shone brightly on the green trees just as
if it wanted to say : " You must not be so sad, Johannes ! Do you see
how beautiful the blue sky is ? Your father is now up there, and is
praying to the kind God that it may always fare well with you."

"I will always be good," said Johannes, "and then I shall go to

24 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

heaven to my father. What joy it will be when we see each other again !
How much I shall have to tell him, and he will show me so many things
and teach me all about the glories of heaven, just as he taught me here
on earth. Oh, what a joy that will be ! "

Johannes pictured it so vividly to himself that he smiled while the
tears were still running down his cheeks. The little birds sat in the
chestnut-trees, twittering: " quivit, quivit ! " They were so pleased and
happy, although they had come to the funeral, but they seemed to know
that the dead man was in heaven, that he had wings larger and much
more beautiful than theirs, and that he was now happy, for he had been
a good man here on earth, and all this made them happy. Johannes saw
how they flew away from the green trees far out into the world, and then
he felt a longing to fly away with them also. But first he made a large
wooden cross to put on his father's grave, and when he brought it there
in the evening he found the grave was strewn with sand and decked with
flowers ; this had been done by people who, although strangers to him,
had greatly respected his dear father, who was now dead.

Early next morning Johannes packed his little bundle and hid his
whole inheritance, which consisted of fifty dollars and a couple of smaller
silver coins, in his belt, with which he was now going to set out into the
world. But first he went to his father's grave in the churchyard, repeated
the Lord's Prayer and said : " Farewell, my dear father ! I will always
try to be a good man, and so you may well ask the kind God that it may
go well with me ! "

Out in the fields, through which Johannes passed, all the flowers were
standing so fresh and lovely in the warm sunshine, and they nodded with
the wind just as if they wished to say : " Welcome into the green fields !
Isn 't it beautiful here ? " But Johannes turned round once more to have a
look at the old church where he was christened when quite a little child,
and where he had gone every Sunday with his old father to worship and
sing hymns. Then, high up in one of the openings of the church tower,
he saw the little brownie with his pointed red cap standing, shading his
face with his uplifted arm, so that the sun should not shine in his eyes.
Johannes nodded farewell to him, and the little brownie waved his red
cap, laid his hand on his heart, and kissed his hand to him many times to
show him that he wished him all possible good and a safe and prosperous
journey.

Johannes then began to think of all the fine things he would now get
to see in the great and glorious world, and walked on farther and farther,
farther than he had ever been before ; he did not know any of the towns
through which he passed, or the people he met ; he was now far away
among strangers.

The first night he had to lay down and sleep under a haystack out in
the fields ; he had no other bed. But he thought it was quite grand ;

THE TRAVELING COMPANION 25

the king could not ha\e it much riner. The whole of the field with the
rivulet, the haystack, and the blue heavens above, made a most beautiful
bedchamber. The green grass, with the little red and white fiowers, was
the carpet, the elder bushes and the wild rose hedges were bouquets of
Howers, and for a wash-hand basin he had all the rivulet with the clear,
fresh water, where the rushes courtesied to him and said both " Good
evening " and " Good morning." The moon was a fine, big lamp, high
up under the blue vault, without any risk of setting fire to the curtains,
fohannes might sleep on in peace, which he did ; he did not wake up till
the sun rose and all the little birds were singing all around him : " Good
morning ! Good morning ! Are you not up yet ? "

The bells were ringing tor church ; it was Sunday. The people were
on their way to hear the sermon and Johannes went with them, sang a
hymn, and listened to the word of God ; it seemed to him as if he were in
his own church, where he had been christened, and had sung hymns with
his fiither.

In the churchyard there were many graves, and on some of them the
grass had grown high. Johannes then thought of his father's grave, which
in time would look like these, now that he could not weed it and keep it
in order. He sat down and plucked the grass from the graves, raised up
the wooden crosses which had fallen down, and put back in their places
the wreaths which the wind had blown away trom the graves, for he
thought: "Perhaps some one will do the same to my father's grave now
that I cannot do it ! "

Outside the churchyard gate stood an old beggar, leaning upon his
crutch ; Johannes gave him the small silver coins he had, and proceeded
on his way, happy and pleased, into the wide world.

Toward evening the weather became terribly bad, and Johannes hur-
ried on to get under shelter, but very soon the dark night set in; just then
he at last reached a little church which lay quite by itself on the top of a
hill. The door was fortunately ajar and he stole inside; here he would
remain till the bad weather was over.

"I '11 sit down here in a corner! " he said, " I am quite tired and sorely
in want of a little rest!" And so he sat down, folded his hands and said
his evening prayer, and in less than no time he was asleep and had begun
to dream, while it thundered and lightened outside.

When he awoke it was midnight ; the bad weather was over and the
moon shone in upon him through the windows. In the middle of the
aisle stood an open coffin with a dead man in it, for he had not yet been
buried. Johannes was not afraid, for he had a good conscience, and knew
that the dead do not harm anybody ; it is living, wicked people who mo-
lest their fellow-creatures. Two such wicked men were standing close to
the dead man, who had been placed inside the church before he was
buried; they were evilly disposed toward him, and would not let him lie

26 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

in peace in his coffin, but wanted to throw him outside the church door
— poor, dead man!

"Why do you do that?" asked Johannes; "it is very bad and wicked!
Let him rest in Christ's name ! "

"What nonsense!" said the two wicked men; "he has made a fool of
us ! He owes us money, which he could not pay, and now that he is dead,
we shall not get a penny. Therefore we will have our revenge; he shall
lie like a dog outside the church door!"

"I have no more than fifty dollars," said Johannes, "that is the whole
of my inheritance; but I will willingly give you the money if you will
promise me on your honor to leave the poor dead man in peace. I shall
be able to get on without the money ; I have strong and sound limbs, and
God will always help me."

"Well," said the horrible men, "if you will pay his debt, we shall not
do anything to him, that you may be sure ot ! " And so they took the
money that Johannes gave them, laughed quite loudly at his good-hearted-
ness and went their way; but Johannes put the dead body right again in
the coffin, folded its hands, took leave of it, and went away quite con-
tentedly through the great forest.

Round about him, where the moon shone in between the trees, he
saw graceful little elves playing about quite merrily; they did not let them-
selves be disturbed, for they knew he was a good, unoffending creature.
It is only wicked people who are not allowed to see the elves. Some ot
them were not bigger than one's finger, and had their long, golden hair
fastened up with golden combs; they were rocking, two and two, on the
large dewdrops, which had settled on the leaves and the long grass. Some-
times the dewdrops rolled off, when the elves would fall down between the
stalks of the long grass, and then there was a regular outburst of laughter
and merriment among the tiny little people. It was a rare frolic ! They
were singing, and Johannes plainly recognized all the pretty songs which
he had learned when a little boy. Large and gaudy-colored spiders, with
silver crowns on their heads, were spinning from one hedge to another
long, hanging bridges and palaces which, when the fine mist settled on
them, looked like shining crystal in the clear moonlight. This lasted un-
til the sun rose. Then the little elves crept into the flower buds, and the
wind caught hold of their bridges and palaces, which then sailed off
through the air like big cobwebs.

Johannes had just got out of the forest when a strong, manly voice
called out just behind him, "Hullo, comrade! Where are you going?"

"Out into the wide world," said Johannes. "I have neither father
nor mother; I am only a poor boy, but God will help me."

"I 'm also going out into the wide world," said the strange man.
"Shall we two keep each other company?"

"Yes, certainly!" said Johannes, and so they went on together. They

THE TRAVELING COMPANION

soon came to like one another very much, for they were both good people.
But Johannes found that the stranger was much wiser than he. He had
been nearly all over the world, and could tell him about every possible
thing in existence.

The sun stood high in the heavens when they sat down under a big
tree to eat their breakfast. fust then an old woman came along the road.
She was very old and walked quite bent, leaning upon a crutch, and carry-
ing on her back a bundle of hrewood, which she had gathered in the
forest. Her apron was fastened up, and Johannes saw three big rods,
made of ferns and willow-twigs, projecting from it. Just when she was
quite close to them, her foot slipped; she fell and gave a loud scream, for
she had broken her leg — the poor old woman.

Johannes proposed at once that they should carry her home to where
she lived, but the stranger opened his bag, took out a jar and said he had
a salve in it which could at once make her leg sound and well, so that she
could walk home herself, just as if she never had broken it. But in return he
wanted her to make him a present of the three rods she had in her apron.
"That's being well paid!" said the old woman, nodding her head quite
strangely ; she did not like very

much to part with her rods; ^

but im the other hand it was
not very pleasant to lie there
with a broken leg, so she gave ^
him the rods, and as soon as he
had rubbed the salve on her
leg the old crone got on her
legs and was able to walk even
better than before. That was
a proof of what the salve could
do ; but then it was not to be
got at a chemist's either.

" What are you going to do
with those rods ?" asked JoTian-
nes of his traveling companion.

" They '11 make three Hne
nosegays," said he, " just the
sort I like, for I am a tunny
fellow, you know ! "

And so they walked on for
some distance.

" How the clouds are gather-
ing ! " said Johannes, pointing
straight before them ; " what
awful, heavy clouds ! "

'*^^

THEY SAT DOWN UNDER A BIG TREE TO
EAT THEIR BREAKFAST

28 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

" No, they are not clouds," said his traveling companion, " they are
mountains, beautiful, great mountains, where vou can get high up above
the clouds into the pure air ! It is delightful, I can assure you ! To-morrow
we shall be a good bit on our way out into the world ! "

They were not so near to them as they thought ; thev had to walk a
whole day before they reached the mountains, where the dark forests grew
straight up toward the heavens, and where there were stones as big as a
whole town ; it certainly was hard work to get right across them, and
therefore Johannes and his traveling companion went into an inn to get a
good rest and gather strength for the journey on the morrow.

Down in the large bar parlor in the inn a great many people were
assembled, tor there was a man there with a puppet-show; he had just put
up his little theater, and the people sat all round the room to see the play,
but right in front of all an old fat butcher had taken a seat, the best of all ;
his big bulldog (ugh! how tierce he looked) sat bv his side and stared like
everybody else.

Now the play began ; it was a pretty piece with a king and a queen in
it ; they sat on a velvet throne and had golden crowns on their heads and
long trains to their robes, which, of course, they could very well afford.
The most beautiful wooden dolls with glass eyes and big mustaches were
standing at all the doors, and were opening and shutting them, so that some
fresh air could get into the room. It was a beautiful play, and it was not
at all tragic, but just as the queen stood up and walked across the floor, the
big bulldog, — goodness knows what he could have been thinking about, —
but as he was not kept back by the fat butcher, he made a spring right on
to the stage, seized the queen round her slender waist, and one could hear
her going " crick-crack ! " It was really terrible !

The poor man, who managed the whole show, became very frightened,
and was so sorry for his queen, for she was the most beautiful doll he had,
and now that ugly bulldog had bitten her head off; but afterward when
the people had gone away, the stranger, who was in Johannes's company,
said he would soon put her right, and so he brought out his jar and rubbed
the doll with the salve, with which he helped the poor old woman that
broke her leg. No sooner had the doll been rubbed than she was all right
again ; yes, she could even move all her liinbs of her own accord ; it was
not at all necessary to pull her by the string; the doll was just like a living
being, except that she could not speak. The man who owned the little
puppet-show was greatly pleased; now he need not hold this doll at all hv
the string, for she could dance by herself. None of the other dolls could
do that.

Afterward, when night came on and all the people had gone ti) bed,
some one began to sigh so heavily, and continued sighing so long, that
everybody got up to see who it could be. The man who had the show
went to his little theater, for it was from there ttie sighing came. All

FOUR SKKLETONS OK PRINCES WHO HAD WOOED THE PRINCESS.

THE TRAVELING COMPANION

the wooden dolls lay mixed up together, the king and all his yeomen
were sighing most pitifully, and staring with their big glass eyes, for they
wanted so much to be rubbed a little, just like the queen, so that they too
might be able to move about of themselves. The queen went down at
once on her knees and held up her beautiful crown, while she begged :
"Take it, oh, take it ! But rub my consort and my courtiers!" The poor
man who owned the theater and all the dolls could not help weeping, for

"1^^ /I '^■

THE QUEEN WENT DOWN ON HER KNEES AND HELD UP HER CROWN, BEGGING,
" TAKE IT, OH, TAKE IT ! "

he really felt sorry for them; he promised the traveling companion at
once that he would give him all the money he took at his show the next
evening if he would only rub four or five of his finest dolls, but the travel-
ing companion said he would not ask for anything but the big saber which
the man wore by his side, and when he got it he rubbed six of the dolls,
who at once began dancing, which they did so beautifully that all the
girls, the real, living girls, who were looking on, took to dancing as well.
The coachman and the cook, the footmen and the chamber-maid, and all
the strangers danced ; even the fire-shovel and the tongs wanted to join in

32 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

the dance, but they toppled over at the very first jump they made — yes, it
was indeed a merry sight !

Next morning Johannes and his traveling companion went away from
all of them and continued their journey across the lofty mountains and
through the large pine-forests. They got so high up that the church
towers far down below them looked at last like small red berries among
all the green, and they could see a long way off, for many, many miles
off, far away to places where they had never been. Johannes had never
before seen so much of the beauties of this lovely world all at once; the
sun shone so warm through the fresh blue air, he heard the huntsmen
blow their bugles among the mountains, so beautifully and gaily, that the
tears came into his eyes with joy and he could not help saying: "I feel as
if I could kiss you, dear Lord, because you are so kind to us all, and have
given us all the loveliness there is in the world!"

The traveling companion also stood with folded hands, looking out
over the forest and the cities that lay bathed in the warm sunshine. Just
then they heard the most wonderful and lovely music over their heads;
they looked up and saw a large white swan soaring above them in the air;
it was very beautiful, and it sang as they never before had heard a bird
sing; but the song grew fiiinter and fainter, the bird bent its head and
dropped quite slowlv down at their feet, where it lav dead — poor, beauti-
ful bird !

"Two such beautiful wings," said the companion, "as white and large
as those which this bird has, are worth a deal of money ! I '11 take them
with me! You can now see it was a good thing I took the saber!" and
with one blow he cut off both wings of the dead swan, which he wanted
to keep.

They nt)w traveled for many, manv miles across the mountains, till at
last they saw before them a great city, with over a hundred steeples, which
shone like silver in the sunshine. \n the middle of the city was a splendid
marble palace, with a roof of red gold, and here lived the king.

Johannes and his companion would not go straight into the city, but
stopped at the inn outside it, so that they might make themselves tidv, for
they wanted to look respectable when they got into the streets. The
landlord told them that the king was such a good man, that he never did
any injustice or harm to any one, either in one way or another, but as for
his daughter — -well, heaven preserve us, she was a very wicked princess
indeed! Beauty she possessed enough, — no one could be more beautiful
and fascinating than she, — but what good could that be.? She was a
wicked witch, who was the cause of so many handsome princes having
lost their lives. She had given permission to all men to woo her; every-
body might come and try his luck, whether he was a prince or a beggar,
that did not matter as far as she was concerned; the suitor would only
have to guess three things which she would ask him. If he guessed

THE TRAVELING COMPANION 33

rightly she would marry him, and he should be king of the whole country
when her father died ; but if he could not guess the three things she would
order him to be hanged or beheaded — so cruel and wicked was this beau-
tiful princess! Her fither, the king, was much distressed at all this, but
he could not forbid her wicked proceedings, for he had once said he would
have nothing at all to do with her love affairs; she might do just as she
pleased. Every prince who came and tried his luck at guessing, in order
to win the princess, was sure to tail, and so he was hanged or beheaded ;
they had all been warned in time, and, of course, they need not have gone
a-courting. The old king was so grieved at all this misery and wretched-
ness that he lay on his knees a whole day every year with all his soldiers,
and prayed that the princess might mend her wicked ways; but she was
not at all in the humor for that ! All the old women, who were fond of
spirits, colored it quite black before they drank it. That was the way in
which they mourned, and what more could they do r

"What a terrible princess!" said Johannes; "she really t)ught to be
birched, that might do her some good. If only I were the old king, I
would whip her till she was sore all over her body!"

fust then they heard the people outside shouting "hurrah ! " The prin-
cess was on her way past the house ; she was really so beautiful that every-
body forgot how wicked she was, and therefore they cried " hurrah ! "
Twelve beautiful maidens, all dressed in white silk dresses and with golden
tulips in their hands, rode by her side on coal-black horses. The princess
herself had a snow-white horse, decked with diamonds and rubies ; her
riding habit was woven of pure gold, and the whip she held in her hand
looked like a sunbeam. The golden crown on her head glittered as if it
were set with small stars from the heavens, and her mantle was made of
thousands of beautiful butterflies' wings, but nevertheless she herself was
much more beautiful than all her clothing.

As soon as Johannes saw the princess his face became as red as blood,
and he could scarcely utter a word, for the princess was the exact image ot
the beautiful maiden with a golden crown about whom he had dreamed the
night his father died. He thought her so beautiful that he could not help
falling in love with her. Surely it could not be true that she was a wicked
witch who would hang or behead people if they could not guess what she
was thinking about. "Everyone is allowed to woo her," he said, "even
the poorest beggar. I will go up to the palace; I cannot help myself! "

They all said he should not do it; it was sure to go with him as with
all the others. His traveling companion dissuaded him from it also, but
Johannes thought he would be all right, so he brushed his boots and coat,
washed his hands and face, combed his beautiful yellow hair, and went all
by himself into the city and up to the palace.

"Come in!" said the old king, when Johannes knocked at the door.

Johannes opened it, and the old king in his dressing-gown and em-

34 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

broidered slippers came to meet him ; he had the crown on his head and
carried the scepter in one hand, and the golden apple in the other.
"Wait a bit," he said, and put the apple under his arm, so that he could
hold out his hand to Johannes. But as soon as he heard he was a suitor
for his daughter's hand he began to crv so violently that both the scepter
and the apple fell on the floor, and he had to drv his tears on his dressing-
gown — poor old king !

"Do n't think of it," he said, "you '11 fare as badly as all the others.
Now just come and see ! " and so he led Johannes out into the princess's plea-
sure garden. There a terrible sight met his eyes. In every tree hung
three or four princes, who had wooed the princess, but had not been able
to guess what she had been thinking of. Every gust of wind made the
skeletons rattle, so that the little birds were frightened away and never
dared to come into the garden ; all the flowers were fastened up to human
bones, and in the flower-pots were placed grinning skulls. That was cer-
tainly a strange garden for a princess.

" Here you can see ! " said the old king, " it will fare with you as with
all the others you see here. Let it therefore be! You really make me un-
happy, for I take it so much to heart! "

Johannes kissed the hand of the good old king and said that things
WQuld come all right, for he was very much in love with the lovely
princess.

At this moment the princess herself came riding into the palace yard
with all her ladies ; they therefore went out to meet her and say " Good
morning" to her. She was really very beautiful ; she held out her hand to
Johannes, who now could not help loving her more than ever ; she could
not be the cruel, wicked witch that all the people said she was. They all
went into the hall, where little pages offered them sweetmeats and ginger-
nuts, but the old king was so distressed that he could not touch anything
at all ; besides, the ginger-nuts were too hard tor him.

It was then arranged that Johannes should come up to the palace again
next morning ; the judges and the whole council would then be assembled
and hear how clever he was at guessing. If he got on well the first time,
he was to come twice more, but as yet no one had ever succeeded in guess-
ing right the first time, and so they lost their lives.

Johannes was not at all anxious as to how he would fare ; he was quite
pleased and only thought of the beautiful princess, and believed firmly that
God would help him, but how, he did not know, nor did he want to think
of it either. He went dancing along the high road on his way back to
the inn, where his companion was waiting for him.

Johannes never tired of telling him how nice the princess had been to
him and how beautiful she was ; he was already longing greatly for the
next day, when he was to go to the palace and try his luck at guessing.

But his companion shook his head and was greatly troubled. " I am

THE TRAVELING COMPANION

very fond of you ! " he said, " we might still have kept together for a long
time, and now I am going to lose you already ! Poor, dear Johannes ! I
could almost cry, hut I will not disturb your happiness on the last evening,
perhaps, we are to be together. We will be merry, quite merry ! To-
morrow when you are gone, I can cry ! "

All the people in the city had soon got to know that a new suitor for
the princess's hand had arrived, and there was therefore great sorrow among

•^^^^^^"'^^'^^P^^^^^^^'^?^^^

them. The playhouse was closed, all the women who sold cakes and
sweets in the streets tied black crape round their sugar-pigs, and the king
and the parsons lay on their knees in the church ; there was such lamenta-
tion, for Johannes would surely not fare better than all the other suitors.

In the evening the traveling companion brewed a large bowl of punch
and told Johannes that now they were going to be really merry and drink
the health of the princess. But when Johannes had drunk two glasses,
he became so sleepy that it was not possible for him to keep his eyes open,
and at last he fell asleep. His companion then lifted him quite gently
from the chair and laid him on the bed, and when it was quite dark he

36 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

took the two large wings which he had cut off the swan, tied them fast
to his shoulders, and the biggest rod which he had got from the old woman
who fell and broke her leg, he put in his pocket ; he then opened the
window and flew over the city straight to the palace, where he hid himself
in a corner up under the window which led into the princess's bedchamber.
Everything was quiet all over the town; the clock now struck a quar-
ter to twelve, the window was opened and the princess, with long black
wings on her shoulders and dressed in a large white cloak, flew away over
the city to a great mountain; but the traveling companion, who had made
himself invisible so that she could not see him, flew behind her and kept
on whipping her with his rod till there were actually signs of blood where
he had struck her. Ugh! what a journey through the air! The wind
caught hold of her cloak so that it spread out on all sides just like a big
sail on a ship, and the moon shone through it.

, "How it hails! How it hails!" the princess said at every blow she got
from the rod, and well she deserved them all. At last she reached the
mountain and knocked tor admission. There was a rumbling sound like
the roll of thunder, and then the mountain opened and the princess went
in. The traveling companion followed her, for no one could see him as
he was invisible. They went through a great long passage where strange
lights were seen sparkling on the walls; over a thousand glowing spiders
were running up and down the walls, shining like Are. They then came
to a great hall, built of silver and gold; red and blue flowers as large as
sun-flowers shone from the walls, but no one could pluck any of these
flowers, for the stems were horrible poisonous snakes, and the flowers were
fiery flames, which blazed out of their mouths. The whole of the ceiling
was covered with shining glow-worms and azure blue bats, which were
flapping awav with their thin wings; it was quite a wonderful sight. In
the middle ot the hall was a throne, supported by the skeletons of tour
horses with harness made of red, fiery spiders; the throne itself was of
milk-white glass, and the cushion for sitting on consisted of little black
mice biting each other's tails. Above it was a canopy of rose-colored
spiders' webs, studded with beautiful little green flies, which sparkled like
diamonds. On the throne sat an old troll with a crown on his uglv head
and a scepter in his hand. He kissed the princess on the forehead and let
her sit by his side on the costly throne, and then the music began. Great
black grasshoppers played on Jews' harps, and the owl struck herself on
the stomach, for she had no drum. It was a funny concert! Little
brownies with will-o'-the-wisps in their caps danced round the hall. No-
body could see the traveling companion; he had taken a place just behind
the throne and could hear and see everything. The courtiers, who now
came into the hall, looked nice and grand enough, but any one with his
wits about him could see what they really were. They were nothing
more or less than broomsticks with cabbage heads on their ends to which

JOHANNES UNTIED HIS HANDKERCHIEF AND SHOWED THE PRINCESS THE UGLV HEAD OK IHE

THE TRAVELING COMPANION 39

the troll had given life, as well as their embroidered clothes. But this did
not matter much after all, for they were only used tor show.

After there had been some dancing the princess told the troll that she
had got a new suitor, and asked therefore what she should think of tor the
suitor to guess when he came to the palace next morning.

"Just listen," said the troll, "I '11 tell you something. You must think
of something very easy, for then he won't guess it at all! Think ot one
of your shoes. He won't guess that. Then have his head cut off, but
don't forget when vou come here to-morrow night to bring his eyes with
you, for I want to eat them!"

The princess courtesied quite low, and said she would not forget the
eves. The troll then opened the mountain for her and she flew home
again, but the traveling companion followed behind and whipped her so
hard with the rod that she groaned heavily at the severe hailstorm, as she
thought, and made all the haste she could to get back to her bedchamber
through the window, but the traveling companion flew back to the inn,
where Johannes was still asleep, took off his wings and lay down on his
bed, for he might well be tired.

It was quite early in the morning when Johannes awoke; his com-
panion also got up and told him he had had a very wonderful dream in
the night about the princess and one of her shoes, and he therefore begged
Johannes to be sure to ask her if she might not have been thinking of one
of her shoes. For that was what he had heard from the troll in the
mountain, but he would not tell Johannes anything about that; he begged
him only to ask if she had been thinking of one of her shoes.

"I may as well ask about one thing as another," said Johannes; "it
may be quite true what you have dreamt, for I always believe that God
will be sure to help me ! But still I will say farewell to you, for if I guess
wrong I shall never see you any more!"

They then kissed each other and Johannes went into the city and
thence straight to the palace. The whole hall was hlled with people; the
judges sat in their easy chairs, with eider-down cushions at the back of
their heads, for thev had so much to think about. The old king stood up
and dried his eves with a white handkerchief. The princess now entered
the hall; she was still more lovely than the day before and greeted every-
body in the most friendly manner, but to Johannes she gave her hand and
said: "Good morning to you!"

Johannes was now to guess what she had been thinking of. Good-
ness, what a kind look she gave him 1 But no sooner had she heard him
say the one word "shoe," than she turned as pale as death and trembled
all over ; but that could not help her, for he had guessed right.

My gracious ! How glad the old king was ! He turned a somersault
that made every one stare, and all the people clapped their hands at him
and Johannes, who had now guessed right the first time.

40 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

The traveling companion was beaming with delight when he got to
know how successful Johannes had been; but Johannes folded his hands
and thanked God, who, no doubt, would also help him on the second and
third occasions. Next day the guessing was to begin again.

In the evening things happened in just the same way as on the pre-
vious one. When Johannes was asleep, the traveling companion flew be-
hind the princess to the mountain and birched her still more than on the
last occasion, for now he had taken two of the rods with him. No one
saw him, while he heard everything. This time the princess \\'as going to
think of her glove, and this he told to Johannes, just as if it had come to
him in a dream. Johannes was thus once more able to guess right, and
there were in consequence great rejoicings at the palace. The whole court
began turning somersaults, just as they had seen the king do on the hrst
day, but the princess lay on a sofa and would not speak a word. All now
depended on whether Johannes could guess right the third time. If all
went well he would have the beautiful princess and inherit the whole
kingdom when the old king was dead ; if he guesiied wrong he would lose
his life, and the troll would eat his beautiful blue eyes.

The evening before the third trial Johannes went early to bed, said his
prayers, and slept quite peacefully ; but his companion fastened the wings
to his back, and the sword to his side, and took all the three rods with
him and flew off to the palace.

The night was pitch dark and a storm was raging, so that the tiles flew
off the houses, and the trees in the garden, on which the skeletons were
hanging, swung to and fro like reeds before the wind ; every moment there
were flashes of lightning and the thunder rolled as if in one continuous
clap which lasted the whole of the night. The window was now thrown
open and the princess flew out; she was as pale as death, but she laughed
at the bad weather and thought it was not bad enough; her white cloak
whirled round in the air like a large sail, but the traveling companion
whipped her so hard with his three rods that the blood trickled down on
the ground, and at last- she was scarcely able to fly any farther. But at
length she got to the mountain.

"It is hailing and blowing," she said; "never have I been out in such
weather."

"Yes, one can have too much of a good thing," said the troll. The
princess then told him that Johannes had guessed right again the second
time; if he should succeed again the next day he would win, and she
would never be able to come to him in the mountain any more, and never
be able to try her hand at witchcraft as before; and therefore she was quite
distressed in her mind.

"He shall not guess it," said the troll; "I will think of something that
has never entered his head, or else he must be a greater troll than I. But
now we will make merrv ! " And so he took the princess by both hands,
and thev danced round with all the little brownies and will-o'-the-wisps in

THE TRAVELING COMPANION 41

the room; the red spiders ran quite merrily up and down the walls, and
the fiery flowers seemed to throw out sparks of fire. The owl beat the
drum, the crickets chirped, and the grasshoppers played on the Jews' harp.
It was, indeed, a merry ball !

After they had danced enough, the princess had to think of getting
home, or else she might be missed at the palace. The troll said he would
go with her, and they would then be together for a little while longer.
So away they flew in the bad weather, while the traveling companion
lashed their backs with all his three rods till they were worn into shreds;
never before had the troll been out in such a hail-storm. Outside the
palace he said farewell to the princess and whispered to her at the same
time: "Think of my head"; but the traveling companion heard it sure
enough, and just at the moment when the princess was slipping through
the window into her bed-chamber, and when the troll was going to turn
back, he seized him by his long black beard, and with his saber cut off
the ugly head of the troll close to the shoulders, so quickly that the troll
did not even see him. The body he threw into the sea to the fishes, but
the head he only dipped into the water and then tied it up in his silk
handkerchief, took it with him home to the inn and lay down to sleep.

Next morning he gave Johannes the handkerchief, but told him that
he must not open it till the princess asked him what she was thinking of.

There were so many people in the large hall of the palace that they
were standing up against one another like radishes tied up in a bundle.
The council sat in their chairs with their soft cushions, and the old king
had put on new clothes, and the gold crown and scepter had been polished
up, till everything looked quite grand; but the princess was quite pale and
wore a coal-black dress, as if she were going to a funeral.

"What have I been thinking of?" she said to Johannes, who at once
untied the handkerchief and became quite frightened himself when he saw
the ugly head of the troll. All the people shuddered, for it was a terrible
sight, but the princess sat like an image in stone, and could not utter a single
word. At last she rose and gave Johannes her hand, for he had now guessed
right enough. She did not look at anybody, but sighed quite deeply:
"Now you are my master! This evening we will celebrate our wedding!"

"That 's what I Hke!" cried the old king, "that 's what we like to
see!" All the people shouted "hurrah!" the military band played in the
streets, the bells were rung, and the women who sold cakes took the black
crape off their sugar-pigs, for now there was joy in the land. Three
whole roasted oxen, filled with ducks and fowls, were placed in the
middle of the market-place, where every one might cut a piece tor him-
self; the fountains ran with the finest wine, and all who bought a penny
cake at the bakers' got six large buns into the bargain, and they were
buns with raisins in them.

In the evening the whole town was illuminated, and the soldiers fired
salutes with guns and the boys with percussion caps, and there was eating

42 THE TRAVELING COMPANION

and drinking, and clinking of glasses, and a running about at the palace,
and a long way off one could hear them singing :

So many pretty girls I see.

All ready for a swing about,

The drummer's march they wait with glee;

Come, tiiir one, trip it in or out.

Trip it and dance — ankle and knee —

Till shoe and sole part company.

But the princess was still a witch, and did not at all care for Johannes.
This the traveling companion was aware of, and he therefore gave Johan-
nes three feathers from the swan's wings and a little bottle with a few
drops of some liquid in it, and told him that he should let a large tub,
filled with water, he placed near the bridal bed, and when the princess
was about to get into bed he should give her a gentle push so that she
should fall into the water, and he should then duck her three times, after
having first thrown in the feathers and the drops from the little bottle, and
she would be freed from the spell ot witchcraft she was under and come
to love him very much.

Johannes did all that his ci)mpanit)n had advised him to do. The
princess screamed loudly when he ducked her under the water, sprawled
about in his grip, and was turned into a large coal-black swan with flash-
ing eyes; the second time, when she came up above the water, the swan
had become white, with the exception of a single black ring round the
neck. Johannes muttered a pious prayer and ducked the bird for the
third time under the water, and the next moment it was changed into
the most beautiful princess. She was more lovely than ever, and she
thanked him with tears in her beautiful eyes for having freed her from the
spell of the troll.

Next morning the old king and the whole court came to offer their
congratulations, which lasted till far into the day. Last of all came the
traveling companion; he had his stick in his hand and his knapsack on his
back. Johannes kissed him many times and asked him not to go away;
he must remain with him, for he was the cause of all his good fortune.
But the traveling companion shook his head and said in a kind and friendly
tone: "No, my time is now up. I have only paid my debt to you. Do
you remember the dead man whom the wicked men wanted to disturb .?
You gave everything you possessed that he might have peace in his grave.
The dead man was I!"

And the next moment he was gone. The wedding lasted a whole
month. Johannes and the princess loved one another very much, and the
old king lived to see many happy days, and he let his wee little grand-
children ride on his knee and play with his scepter ; but Johannes was king
over the whole country.

THE MONEY-PIG

^^liJ-r^P^^^^'d ,-^;

^^'-^'Z^^-^l #^^

V\r^

<' i;>

THE MONEY-PIG

THERE was such a lot of toys in the nursery; on the top of the chest
of drawers stood the money-box. It was made ot clay in the
shape of a pig, and had the usual slit in its back, but this slit had
been made bigger with a knife, so that silver dollars could also be put into
it; two of these had already passed through, besides many other kinds of
money. The money-pig was so stuffed that he could not rattle any longer,
and that is the highest a money-pig can attain to. There he stood on top
of the chest of drawers and looked down upon everything in the room ;
he knew well enough that with what he had in his stomach he could buy
the whole lot of them, and that 's what is called having confidence in
oneself.

THE MONEY-PIG

The other toys thought the same, although they did not say so; there
were other things to talk about. The top drawer was partly open, and
there a large doll appeared; she was rather old, and had had her neck
riveted. She looked round and said : " Shall we play men and women ?
It '11 be something for a change." And then there was a commotion!
Even the pictures on the wall turned themselves round; they knew that
thev had another side as well, but they did not turn round Just for the sake
of contradicting.

crash! there he lay i)n the floor, all in bits and pieces, while the

MONEY rolled ABOUT.

It was midnight; the moon shone through the window and provided
lighting for nothing. Now the fun was going to begin; everything in the
room had been invited, even the perambulator, which, after all, only be-
longed to the commoner kind of toys. " Everyone is good enough in
his own estimation," it said; "we cannot all be of noble birth! Somebody
must make himself useful, as they say."

The money-pig was the only one who got a written invitation ; he stood
too high, they all thought, to hear them if they spoke to him. He did
not send word, either, whether he was coming, for he did not turn up.
If he was to take any part in it he would have to enjoy it up there from

THE MONEY-PIG 47

his own point of view. They would make their arrangements accordingly,
and so they did.

The little toy-theater was at once placed so that he could look straight
into it; they wanted to hegin with a play, and afterward there were to he
tea and mental exercises, hut they commenced with the latter. The rock-
ing-horse talked ahout training and thoroughbreds, the perambulator about
railways and steam power — all of which were matters connected with their
occupations, and which they could discuss. The parlor clock talked about
politics — tick-tick! it knew the time of the day, but it was said that it
did not go correctly. The bamboo cane stood there, proud of its ferrule
and silver button, because it was mounted both at top and toe; in the sofa
lay two embroidered cushions; they looked very pretty and stupid.

And then the play was to begin.

All were seated and looked on ; they had been requested to rap, crack,
and rattle, according as they were pleased. But the riding-whip said he
would never rap to old people, only to those who were not engaged to be
married.

"I '11 crack to all and everything!" said the percussion cap. "One
has to be in some place, after all! "■ thought the spittoon; this was the
kind of thoughts they had in their minds as they sat at the play. The
piece was not of much account, but it was well performed ; all the actors
turned their colored side to the audience, for they had only been made to
be seen on the one side and not on the other. They all played excel-
lently; they came right out in front of the stage; their strings were too
long, but this made them all the more noticeable. The doll with the
riveted neck became so excited that the rivets got loose, and the money-
pig became so excited in his way that he made up his mind to do something
for one of them, to put him in his will as the one who should be publicly
buried with him, when the time came.

It was such a treat that they gave up tea and went on with mental
exercises, which they called playing men and women, and there was no
harm in that, for they were only playing- — -and everyone was thinking
about himself and what the money-pig thought; but the money-pig's
thoughts went farthest, for he was thinking about his will and burial and
when it would come to pass — always sooner than you expect it ! Crash !
— and there he lay on the floor, all in bits and pieces, while the
money danced and rolled about; the smaller pieces whirled round and
round, and the bigger ones rolled along the floor, particularly one of the
silver dollars, who wanted to see the world in earnest. And so he did,
and so did all the rest ; the pieces of the money-pig were thrown into the
pail, but next day on the top of the chest of drawers stood a new money-
pig of clay; as yet there was not a penny in him and so he could not
rattle. In this respect he was like the other, and this was at any rate a
beginning, so with this we will come to an end.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

THE GALOSHES HAD THE PROPERTY OF INSTANTLY TRANSPORTING ANY ONE %VHO
PUT THEM ON, TO WHATEVER PLACE, OR TIME, HE WISHED.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

I. THE BEGINNING

IN Copenhagen, in one of the houses in Ostergade, not far from
Kongens Nytorv,^ a large party was being given ; for you know you
must have a party now and then, and then you are done with it, and
can expect to be invited in return.

One half of the company already sat at the card-tables, and the other

1 A large public square in the center of Copenhagen. Ostergade is the principal

thoroughfare leading from it.

52 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

half were waiting to see what would be the result of the remark of the
lady of the house: "Well, we must now think of something ! "

So far they had got, and the conversation was carried on as best it
could. Amongst other things it turned on the Middle Ages. Some con-
sidered that period of far greater interest than our times, and Mr. Knap,
the councilor, defended this opinion so warmly, that the hostess at once
took his side, and both declaimed against Professor Orsted's words in the
almanac about old and modern times, in which our age is given the
preference.

The councilor looked upon the times of King Hans^ as the most
delightful and happy of all.

During this discussion, which was not interrupted except for a moment
by the arrival of the newspaper, in which there was nothing worth reading,
we will betake ourselves to the anteroom, where the coats and cloaks,
umbrellas, and galoshes had been left.

Here were sitting two maids, one young and one old; one might have
thought they had come to fetch their mistresses, some old maiden lady or
widow, but if one looked at them a little closer one would soon have seen
that they were not ordinary servant-girls; their hands were too delicate,
their movements were too stately for that, and their clothes were of quite
a peculiar, bold cut. They were two fairies ; the youngest was not Fortune
herself, but lady's maid to one of the ladies of the bed-chamber, who dis-
tributes the smaller gifts of fortune. The older looked very austere ; she
was Care, who, in her own exalted person, always goes her own errands,
for then she knows they will be properly executed.

They were telling one another where they had been that day ; she, who
was the messenger of Fortune, had only been on some unimportant errands;
she had, she said, saved a new hat from a shower of rain, had procured an
honest man a bow from some grand nonentity, and such like, but what
she had still to perform was something quite unusual.

"I must tell you," she said, "it is my birthday to-day and in honor ot
it I have been intrusted with a pair of galoshes which I am to give to the
world. These galoshes have the virtue of instantly transporting any one
who puts them on, to that place or that time in which he would prefer
to be; and every wish with regard to place and time will at once be ful-
filled, so that mankind will at last be happy down here!"

"So you may think!" said Care. "I think they will be very unhappy
and will bless the moment they get rid of the galoshes."

"Whatever do you mean?" said the other fairy. "I will now place
the galoshes near the door, and some one will put them on by mistake, and
will thus become the fortunate one!"

This was the conversation they held.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

II. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE COUNCILOR

It was late. Councilor Knap, deep in meditation on the times of
King Hans, was on his way home, but fate had so ordained it that instead
of his own galoshes, he had put on the galoshes of fortune, in which he
now stepped out into Ostergade. By the magic power of the galoshes,
however, he was now put back to the days of King Hans, and his feet
went right into the mire and mud of the street, for in those days the
streets were not paved.

['Hi; COUNCILOR bAW A LARGK FIELD BEKOKE HIM, WITH A FEW BUSHES HERE AND THERE,
AND A BROAD STREAM FLOWING THROUGH IT.

"How terribly dirty the street is!" said the councilor. "The whole
pavement has vanished and all the lamps are out!"

The moon had not yet risen high in the sky, and the weather was
somewhat misty, so that everything around him was buried in the dark-
ness. At the next corner, however, hung a lantern in front of an image
of the Madonna, but it gave hardly any light; the councilor only dis-
covered it when he stood just under it, and his eyes fell upon the painted
picture of the Mother and the Child.

"That 's probably some traveling show," he thought, "where they
have forgotten to take in the sign."

A couple of men in the dress of the period passed him by.

" What curious clothes they wear ! They must be coming home from
a masquerade."

Suddenly there came the sound of hfes and drums, and flaming torches
threw a bright light around; the councilor stopped and saw a wonderful
procession coming toward him. First of all came a band of drummers,
who were beating their drums right merrily, and after them followed

54 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

halberdiers with bows and cross-bows. The most important person in the
procession was a man of clerical appearance. The councilor asked in
astonishment what it all meant and who that person might he.

"The Bishop of Zealand!" was the answer.

"Good gracious, what can the bishop be up tor" said the councilor
with a sigh, shaking his head. "Surely it could not be the bishop!"
Pondering on thus, and without looking to the right or the left, he walked
along Ostergade and crossed Hoibro-place. The bridge to the open place
in front of the palace was not to be seen; he caught a glimpse of a low-
lying bank of a river, and came finally to two men who were sitting in
a boat.

"Does your honor want to be ferried across to the island?" thev
asked.

"Across to the island.?" said the councilor, who did not know, of
course, in what period he was now moving. "I have to get to Lille
Torvegade, out at Christianshavn."

The men stared at him.

"Only tell me where the bridge is!" he said. "It is a disgrace that
the lamps are not lighted here, and it is as dirtv and muddy as it one were
wading in a bog ! "

The longer he talked to the boatmen, the more unintelligible they
appeared to him.

"I can't understand your Bornholni jargon!" he said at last in an an-
gry voice, and turned his back upon them. He could not find the bridge,
and there was no sign of a railing. "It is a scandalous state of things!"
he said. Never had he been so disappointed with his existence as this
evening. "I think I '11 take a coach," he thought. But where were the
coaches? Not one was to be seen. "I shall have to go back to Kongens
Nytorv; there must be some coaches there, otherwise I shall never get out
to Christianshavn ! "

He then set off through Ostergade and had almost got to the end of
it, when the moon made her appearance.

"Good gracious I What scaffolding is that thev have put up here?"
he exclaimed when he saw the eastern gate, which at that time stood at
the end of Ostergade.

At last he found a wicket and through this he got out to what is now
our Kongens Nytorv, but which at that time was a large field, with a few
bushes here and there. A broad canal or stream Howed through the field,
and on the opposite bank stood some miserable wooden huts used by the
vskippers from Halland in Sweden, after whom the place was called
Hallandsaas.

"Either I see a Fata Morgana, as they call it, (.>r I am tipsy!" wailed
the councilor. "What can this be? What can this be?"

He turned back again, in the full belief that he was ill. When he

W \s (iNh OF THE l\\Fk\s (II
SKIPPERS. CITI/FNS, AND

IHOSF I)A\s A NUMHFR Oh IKiPIt, LONSlSTING OF
EARNED PFRsON'VGES WERE SITTING THFRF

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 57

got into the street he looked more closely at the houses; most of them
were built of timber and plaster, and many had only thatched roofs.

"No, I am not at all well!" he sighed, "and I drank only one glass
of toddy, but it does not agree with me. Besides, it was very wrong to
give us toddy and hot salmon; I shall just mention it to Madame. I
wonder if I should go back and tell them how I feel? Hut it would look
so bad, and they may have gone to bed."

He began looking for the house, but it was not to be found.

"This is really terrible! I cannot recognize Ostergade. There is not
a shop to he seen. Only old, miserable shanties, just as if I were in
Roskilde or Ringsted. Alas, I am ill ! It 's no use being timid. But
where in all the world is the house? It is no longer the same. But the
people are still up. Oh, I must be quite ill!"

He then pushed against a half-open door, through which the light
shone out. It was one of the taverns of those days, a kind of beer-house.
The room had the appearance of the Holstein parlors, and a number of
people, consisting of skippers, Copenhagen citizens, and a couple of learned
personages, were sitting there in deep discourse over their mugs, and paid
little attention to the councilor who came in.

"I beg your pardon," said the councilor to the landlady, who came
toward him; "I have been taken very ill. Can you get me a coach to
Christianshavn?"

The woman looked at him and shook her head, whereupon she spoke
to him in the German language. The councilor thought she did not
understand Danish, and therefore repeated his request in German; this and
his dress confirmed the woman in her belief that he was a foreigner. She
soon understood that he was ill, and gave him a jug of water, which was
brought from the well and was somewhat brackish in taste.

The councilor rested his head on his hand, drew a deep breath, and
wondered at all the strange things around him.

" Is that this evening's 'Daily News'?" he asked for the sake of saying
something, as he saw the woman move a large sheet of paper.

She did not understand what he meant, but handed him the paper; it
was a wood-cut, representing a Fata Morgana seen in the ancient city of
Cologne.

"It is very old," said the councilor, and he became quite cheerful at
coming across such an ancient print. " How did you become possessed of
this rare copy ? It is very interesting, although it is altogether a fable. We
explain such aerial visions as being Northern lights which they have seen ;
probably they are produced by electricity."

Those who sat nearest to him and heard his remarks, looked at him in
surprise, and one of them rose to his feet, took off his hat respectfully, and
said, with the most serious expression : " You are surely a very learned man,
monsieur! "

58 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

"Oh, no," answered the councilor; "I can only discuss things in
general, as one ought to do."

'' Modestia'is, a great virtue," said the iiian, "otherwise I must say to
your speech mihi secus videtur, yet will I here willingly suspend my
judiciutn."

"May I ask whom I have the pleasure of speaking with?" asked the
councilor.

"I am a baccalaureus in the Holy Writ!" answered the man.

This answer was sufficient for the councilor; the title corresponded to
the dress in this case. "He must be an old village schoolmaster," he
thought, "a quaint old fellow, such as one can still find over in Jutland."

"This is no locus docetidi," the man began, "yet I would ask you to
condescend to speak. You are, no doubt, deeply versed in the classics?"

"Yes, indeed," answered the councilor; "I like to read old instructive
books, but I also like the modern ones, except ' Every-day Stories,' of which
we have enough in real life."

"'Every-day Stories?'" asked our baccalaureus.

"Yes, I mean the new romances we have."

"Ah!" said the man, with a smile, "they are very entertaining, and
are read much at court ; the king is especially fond of the romance of ' Sir
Iffven and Sir Gaudian,' which treats of King Arthur and the Knights ot
the Round Table; he has had many pleasantries over it with his noble
lords." ^

"I have not yet read that," said the councilor, "it must be quite a
new book, which Heiberg has published."

"No," said the man, "it is not published by Heiberg, but by Ciodtred
von Ghemen ! "

"Oh, is that the author?" said the councilor; "it is a very old name.
Why, it is that of the first printer Denmark ever had!"

"Yes, he is our first printer," replied the man; and so the conversation
went on fairly well. One of the good citizens then spoke about the ter-
rible plague which had raged a couple of years before, referring, of course,
to the plague of 1484; the councilor thought they spoke about the
cholera,- and so the discourse went on quite satisfactorily. The freebooter
expedition of 1490 was of such recent date, that they could not help refer-
ring to it; the English freebooters had seized the ships in the roadstead,
they said, and the councilor, who had made a special study of the events
of 1801,^ joined in quite appropriately with his denunciations of the Eng-

1 Holberg tells in his " History of Denmark" such kings as King Arthur, there would also be many

that King Hans, one day when he had been reading knights like Sir Iffven and Sir Gaudian."
the romance of King Arthur, was jesting with the 2 Copenhagen was visiled by a terrible outburst

well-known Ove Rud, of \vhom he was very fond. of cholera in 1 8 3 i .

'• Sir IfR'en and Sir Gaudian, of whom I read in this 3 When the English fleet under Sir Hyde Parker,

book," said he, " must have been remarkable knights. Lord Nelson, and others, defeated the Danish fleet

Such knights we do not have any more nowadays ! " in the roadstead ot Copenhagen.
To this Ove Rud answered : "If there were many

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

lish. The rest of the conversation, however, did not proceed so w^ell;
every moment it gave rise to misunderstandings on both sides; the old
baccalaureus was very ignorant, and the simplest observations of the coun-
cilor appeared to him too bold and too fantastic. They stared at each
other, and when matters became too complicated, the baccalaureus spoke in
Latin, thinking he would be better understood, but it was of no use.

"How do you feel now.?" asked the landlady, pulling the councilor
by the sleeve. He now came back to his senses, for while he had been
talking he had forgotton what had taken place before.

BLESS me!" said THE COUNCILOR, "HAVE I BEE>
STREET, DREAMING ? "

LYING HERE IN THE

"Gracious goodness! where am I.?" he exclaimed, feeling quite giddy
at the thought of it.

"We '11 have some claret! And some mead and some Bremen beer!"
cried one of the guests, "and you shall drink with us!"

Two girls came into the room ; one of them had on a cap of two
colors. They poured out the drink and courtesied ; the councilor felt a
cold shudder down his back.

"What does this mean? What does this mean?" he asked; but he
had to drink with them. The men paid every attention to the good
councilor, who was in despair, and when one of them told him that he
was tipsy, he did not at all doubt the man's words; he only asked them
to get him a droshky, and then they thought he spoke Russian.

Never before had he been in such rough and vulgar company. "One
would think the country had gone back to heathen times," he said to
himself; "this is the most terrible moment of my life!" Just then it
struck him that he would stoop down under the table and creep across to
the door and try to get away, but just as he had got to the door the others
discovered what he was about ; they seized him by the legs, when luckily
for him the galoshes came off, and — -with that the whole spell was broken.

The councilor saw quite plainly a lamp burning brightly just in front

60 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

of him, and behind it a large house. He recognized it as well as the
house next door to it. It was Ostergade, such as we all know it ; he was
lying with his feet toward a gateway and opposite to him sat the night
watchman asleep.

"Bless me ! Have I been lying here in the street, dreaming ?" he said.
"Yes, this is Ostergade! How delightfully light and bright ! It is terrible
to think how one glass of toddy could have affected me ! "

Two minutes afterward he sat in a carriage, which drove him to
Christianshavn, thinking of the anxiety and anguish he had gone through,
and praised with all his heart the happy reality — our own times — which,
with all their shortcomings, were far better than the period of which he had
just had a glimpse; and that, I think, was very sensible of the councilor.

III. THE WATCHMAN'S ADVENTURE

"Why, here's a pair of galoshes ! " said the night watchman. "They
must belong to the lieutenant who lives up there. They are lying close
to the gate ! "

The honest man would gladly have rung the bell and left the galoshes,
for there was still a light to be seen in the house, but he did not like to
awaken the other people in the house, and so he let it be.

" It must be very warm to have a pair of these things on ! " he said.
"How soft the leather is!" He put them on and they fitted him exactly.
"What a funny world this is ! Now there 's the lieutenant, he might lie
in his warm bed, but do you think he does? No, he will keep pacing up
and down the room. Ah, he is a happy man ! He has neither wife nor
youngsters! Every evening he goes out to some party. I only wish I
were he, then I should be a happy man ! "

The moment he uttered this wish the magic power of the galoshes he
had put on took effect; the watchman passed over into the lieutenant's
body and mind. There he stood, up in the room, holding between his
fingers a small rose-colored paper, on which was a poem, written by the
lieutenant himself; for who has not, at some time or other in his life, been
in the mood to write poetry, and if you then write down your thoughts,
then vou have the verses. On this paper was written : —

WERE I BUT RICH!

Were I but rich I This was my constant prayer
When scarce an ell in length — without a care.
Were I but rich, a captain I would be,
With saber, pkime, and coat so brave to see.
Then came the day when fortune smiled on me:
A captain was I — but a poor man still !
For such was heaven's will.

THE WATCHMAN SAT DOWN AGAIN AND BEGAN NODDING. HE HAD STILL THE
GALOSHES ON HIS FEET.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 63

In youth's first flash I sat at eventide,
A sweetheart maid ot seven by my side;
For I had many fairy tales to tell,
And legends rare ; but as for wealth — ah, well I
She cared not but for elf or goblin's spell.
Then was I rich, but not — heaven knows I — in gold.
Or silver coins untokl.

Were I but rich is still my prayer to heaven.
Though now grown tall, I love the maid of seven,
So good is she, so sweet, so fair to see.
Would that she knew my heart's wild fantasy !
Would that she, as of yore, could care for me I
But I am poor, and so my lips are sealed.
My love is unrevealed.

Were I but rich in comtort and repose,
My pain I would not to the world disclose.
If you, my love, can understand, then read
This as a mem'ry of the past. Yet heed I
'T were best, perhaps, your heart were hard indeed !
I 'm poor, alas I my future dark and drear.
But may God bless you, dear I

Yes, these are the kind of verses one writes when one is in love, but
a sensible man does not let them get into print. Lieutenant, love, and
poverty form a triangle, or perhaps, rather, the one half of the broken die
of fortune. The lieutenant himself felt this keenly, and therefore leaned
his head against the window frame and sighed deeply.

" The poor watchman in the street is far happier than I ! He does
not know what I call privation ! He has a home, a wife, and children,
who weep with him in his sorrows and rejoice with him in his joys ! Oh,
I should be happier than I am, if I could change places with him, for he
is much happier than I am ! "

At the same moment the watchman became again a watchman, for it
was through the galoshes of fortune that he had become the lieutenant,
but then, as we have just heard, he felt still less contented, and preferred
to be what he really was. So the watchman was a watchman once more.

"It was a terrible dream, but funny enough!" he said. "I thought I
was the lieutenant up there, and I did not like it at all. I missed the
wife and the youngsters, who are always ready to hug me to death!"

He sat down again and began nodding; he could not quite get rid of
the dream, and he still had the galoshes on his feet. Just then a falling
star shot across the heavens.

"There it goes!" he said, "but there are plenty more. I should like
to have a look at those little things a little nearer, especially the moon, for
she is not likely to slip through one's fingers. The student for whom my

64 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

wife does the rough washing, says that when we die we fly from one
planet to the other. That 's a story, but it would be great fun, if it were
true. I wish I could just take a little leap up there, and my body could
remain here on the steps! "

There are certain things in the world one has to be careful about say-
ing, but one ought to be still more careful if one has got the galoshes of
fortune on one's feet. Just listen what happened to the watchman.

As far as we human beings are concerned, nearly all of us know the
great speed which can be obtained by steam ; we see it on the railways and
on the steamers crossing the seas. Yet the speed thus obtained is like the
pace of the sloth or the snail compared with the rapidity with which light
travels ; it flies nineteen million times faster than the best race-horse. And
yet electricity is still more rapid. Death is an electric shock which we
receive in the heart, and on the wings of electricity the liberated soul flies
away. A ray of sunlight takes eight minutes and some seconds for its
journey over ninety-five millions of miles ; with the express speed of elec-
tricity a soul needs some minutes less to do the same journey. The
distance between the planets is no greater for the soul than the distance
between the houses of friends in the same town, even if they are quite
close to one another. But this electric shock to the heart costs us the use
of our body here below, unless, like the watchman, we happen to have
the galoshes of fortune on our feet.

In a few seconds the watchman had traversed the distance of two hun-
dred and fifty thousand miles to the moon, which, as we know, is of a
much lighter substance than our earth, and as soft as new-fallen snow, as
we might say. He found himself on one of the numerous circular
mountains which we know from Dr. Madeer's large map of the moon.
I suppose you have seen this .? Inside the ring the mountain formed a
caldron with steep sides, about five miles deep ; at the bottom of the
caldron lay a town, which had the same appearance as the white of an
egg poured into a glass of water, with towers, and cupolas, and galleries,
like waving sails, all transparent and floating in the thin air. Our globe
floated like a large fiery ball above his head.

There were many beings to be seen, most probably what we should
call human beings, but they looked quite difl^erent to us ; they had a
language of their own, but although no one could expect the watchman's
soul to understand it, it did so for all that.

The watchman's soul understood the language of the inhabitants of
the moon very well. They discussed about our globe, and explained
their doubts as to its being inhabited; the air there, they said, must be
too thick for any sensible dweller on the moon to live in. They con-
sidered that the moon alone was inhabited by living beings, and was,
after all, the only globe on which the ancient peoples of the planets had
ever lived.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 65

But we will have a look at Ostergade, and see how the body of the
watchman tares.

He sat lifeless on the steps; his pipe had fallen out of his hand, and his
eyes were staring up at the moon after his honest soul, which was roam-
ing about there.

"What's o'clock, watchman?" asked a passer-by. But no answer
came from the watchman, and the passer-by pulled his nose quite gently;
the body lost its balance and fell full length on the ground — the man was
dead to all appearance. The stranger, who had pulled the watchman's
nose, was greatly frightened — the watchman was dead, and dead he
remained. The matter was reported to the authorities, and early in the
morning the body was removed to the hospital.

The watchman's soul would have had anything but an easy task if it
had come back and — as in all possibility it would have done — had looked
for the body in Ostergade, but without finding anything. Most likely it
would first have inquired at the police-station, and afterward proceeded to
the office of the "Public Advertiser" to advertise for it among lost articles,
and finally to the hospital. It may, however, be some comfort to us to
know that the soul is at its best when it acts by itself; the body only makes
it stupid.

As has already been mentioned, the watchman's body was removed to
the hospital, where it was brought into the cleansing room, and the first
thing they did was, of course, to pull off the galoshes, when the soul had to
return to the body ; it made straight for it, and all at once there was life in
it. The watchman assured everybody that he had passed the most terrible
night in his life ; not if he were paid half a dollar would he go through the
same experience again, but now it was happily all over.

He was discharged the same day, but the galoshes were left at the
hospital.

IV. A HEAD IN DIFFICULTY. A RECITATION.
A MOST UNUSUAL JOURNEY

Every inhabitant of Copenhagen knows what the entrance to the
Frederiks Hospital is like, but as some non-residents in all probability may
read this story, we will give a short description ot it.

The hospital is separated from the street by a very high railing, the
solid iron bars of which are so wide apart, that, as the story goes, some
of the very thin students have squeezed themselves through and paid their
little visits into the town. The part of the body which was found most
difficult to get through was the head, and consequently the small heads
were here, as is often the case in this world, the most lucky.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

This will suffice as an introduction.

One of the young students, of whom we need only say that he had
big head, was on duty this evening ; the rain was pouring down, but
spite of these two obstacles he must try to get out, if only for a

quarter of an hour. He did not
think it was worth while to take the
lodge-keeper into his confidence,
when he could slip between the
bars.

There lay the galoshes which
the watchman had forgotten — he
little thought they were the galoshes
of fortune — they would come in
very handy in this weather, and so
he put them on. The question
was now whether he could squeeze
himself through the bars, a thing
he had never tried before.

There he stood. " I wish I
could get my head through!" he
said, and the next moment his head,
big as it was, slipped easily and safely
through the bars, all thanks to the
galoshes. He had still to get his
bodv through, but there he stood in
a ti.v.
"I 'm too fat!" he said; "I thought my head would have been the
worst! I sha'n't be able to get through."

He then attempted to pull back his head quickly, but all ot no avail.
He could move his neck comfortably, but that was all. His lirst feeling
was one of anger, next he felt his spirits sinking below zero. The galoshes
of fortune had brought him into this terrible fix, and unfortunately he never
thought of wishing himself free; he only tried to extricate himself, but was
not able to move from the spot. The rain was pouring down, and not a
living being was to be seen in the street. He could not reach the bell;
how was he to get loose? He foresaw that he might be kept there till, the
early morning, when they would have to send for a smith to get the bars
filed through, but that would take some time, and in the meantime the
boys of the Blue School opposite would be about and stirring, and all
the inhabitants of Nyboder^ would be passing and see him standing in the
pillory ; there would be such a crowd of people as had not been seen since
the giant agave was shown last year.

"Ugh! the blood is rushing to my head! I shall go mad! Yes, I

The sailors' quarter in Copenhagen.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 67

am going out of mv mind! Oh, that I were free again! I should then
be all right."

That is what he should have said sooner, tor the very next moment
after he had expressed the wish, his head was free, and he rushed back
quite dazed with the fright the galoshes of fortune had given him.

We must not imagine that this was the end t)f the matter, no — there
were worse things still to come.

The night passed and the tollowing day as well, but no messenger
came for the galoshes.

In the evening an entertainment was to be given in the little theater in
Kannike lane. The house was crammed; among the recitations was a
new poem, which we will listen to. The title was : —

GRANNY'S SPECTACLES

My Granny's wisdom 's known to great and small :

In olden days, I have no doubt at all,

They would have burned her for a witch. For she

Knows everything that happens ; she can see

Right into next year — aye, and farther, too:

But, tell you </// she knows — no, that she will not do.

I wonder what will happen here next year I

The great events I 'd like to see — to hear

All that's in store for me, for Art, for King,

And Country ; but, alas ! one cannot bring

My Granny to disclose such things as these.

Yet one day I did plague her so, and tease.

That she relented, after I had got

A scolding (for she loves me I) which was rather hot !

"For once your wish I '11 gratify," said she.

And handed me her spectacles. "Now see!

You must find out a place — no matter where —

A place where many people go, and there

Stand where you best can overlook the throng.

Put on my glasses; then you'll see ere long

The people like a pack of cards laid out.

From them you may foretell the future without doubt."

I thanketl my Granny, and ran off to see

It I could find where that strange place could be.

"Where many people go?" The Promenade"?

'T is chilly there! The High Street's quite as bad.

And muddy too! The Theater, then"? Why, this

Is just the thing for me — an evening's bliss!

Well, here I am ! I first salute all here.

Permit me through my Granny's "specs" to peer.

That I may see — no, do not run away! —

It like a pack ot cards you look. I may

68 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

Foretell the future thus. Do you assent?

No answer! Then your silence is consent.

By way of recompense, with you I '11 share

The hidden secrets which the wondrous cards lay bare.

Now we shall see what fate the cards foretell
For you, for me, tor King and Country. Well!

(He puts on the jptrtcifks.)
Yes, it 's quite true I — Ah, that 's a funny sight I
I only wish that you could see it quite
As well as 1 1 But what a lot of beaux.
And Queens of Hearts I Of these there are long rows.
The black ones over there are Clubs and Spades —
I soon shall see them all, both men and maids I
The Oueen of Spades, I see, has only eyes
For one, the Knave of Diamonds — a prize!
Oh, this inpection makes my head turn quite !
There 's such a heap of money here to-night.
And strangers, too, from far across the seas!
Yes, but we do not wish to know such things as these
Of Nobles and of Commons! — Well, "The Times" —
But that I must not breathe of in my rhymes !
To injure that great paper I 've no wish.
So I '11 not take the best bone from the dish!
The theater, then V The latest play ? But no !
The manager's my friend: 't is better so!

The future that awaits me "? Ah ! one's fate
Concerns oneself: one learns it soon or late.
What 's this I see"? In truth, I hardly know;
You '11 see it when it happens. On I go !
Who 's happiest among us here just now ?
That I can tell you easily. I trow

The happiest is . No, it might emlxirrass.

And possibly the others it might harass !
Well — will this gentleman live longer than
The lady"? That 't were ruder still to scan!

Shall I, then, tell of '? No! of ? No! of ? No

Of '? Ah! I hardly know myself wh:it I should show!

So easy 't is to wound, I 'm quite put out.

Yet wait! I '11 tell you what you think about

My powers of prophecy- — no pains I '11 spare!

You think — I beg your pardon ? Everywhere

You think that, as my promise I have broke,

My undertaking only ends in smoke.

And so I hold my peace, most honored sirs and dames:

I '11 own you may be right — but trust that no one blames.

The poem was excellently recited, and the reciter met with a great
success. Among the audience was the student from the hospital, who
appeared to have forgotten his adventure of the night before; he had

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

put on the galoshes because they had not been called for, and as the
streets were very dirty he thought they would be of great service to him.

He liked the poem very much.

The idea took his fancy; he thought he would like to have a pair of
spectacles of that sort; if one used them properly one might perhaps look
right into people's hearts. That would really be more interesting, he
thought, than to see what was going to happen next year, for one
was sure to get to know that — but about the other matter one could
never get to know anything. "I can just imagine to myself all the
gentlemen and ladies in the front row. It one could only look straight
into their hearts! — there would, of course, have to be st)me opening
to see through, as if you were looking into a shop. How my eyes would
like to roam about in these shops !

"In yon lady's heart I should no doubt find a large millinery establish-
ment! The next lady's is empty, but it would be none the worse for a
little cleaning; but there are sure to be some shops of stability! Alas,
yes! " he sighed, "I know of one where everything is genuine, but there is
already a shopman there, and he is the only useless thing in the whole
shop !

"From some of them I should hear, 'Please walk in!' Yes, I should
like to step inside, just as a beautiful, fleeting thought passes through the
heart! "

This was sufficient for the galoshes; the student disappeared altogether,
and a most unusual journey began through the hearts of the spectators in
the front row. The first heart he entered was that of a lady, but he
thought he had suddenly been
transported to an orthopitdic
institution, which they call the
place where the doctors take
away human deformities and
make people straight ; he was
in the room where the plaster
casts of the deformed limbs
hang on the walls, but with
this difference, that at the insti-
tution the casts are taken when the patients arrive, but in this
they were taken and preserved after the worthy people were gone,
were the casts of female friends, their bodily and mental defects,
were here preserved.

He quickly passed into another female heart ; this appeared to him like
a large sacred church, where the white dove of innocence was hovering
over the high altar. He would gladly have gone down on his knees, but
he had to proceed farther on his way to the next heart. He still heard the
tones of the organ, and felt as if he himself had become a new and better

heart

They
which

70 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

man, and was worthy to enter the next sanctuary, which showed him a
poor garret with a sick mother ; but through the open window shone
God's warm sun, and from the little wooden box on the roof hung lovely
roses, while two azure blue-birds sang of the joys of childhood, and the
sick mother prayed for blessings on her daughter.

He next crept on all fours through a well-stocked butcher's shop : it
was meat and nothing but meat he came across ; it was the heart of a rich,
respectable man, whose name was sure to be found in the director)'.

He then entered the heart of this man's wife : it was an old dilapitated
dove-cote; the husband's portrait was used as a weather-cock, which was
connected with the doors in such a way that they opened and shut as the
husband veered round.

Afterward he entered a glass cabinet, like the one we have in Rosen-
berg Castle, only the glass magnified everything to an incredible degree.
In the middle of the floor sat a Dalai Lama, the insignificant "I" of the
person surprised at seeing his own greatness.

Then he fancied himself in a narrow needle-case, full of sharp needles,
and he could not help thinking it must be the heart of an old maid ; but
that was not the case ; it was quite a young officer, with manv orders, a
man of spirit and heart, as they said.

The poor student came out of the last heart in the row in quite a
confused condition ; he was not able to collect his thoughts and could only
believe it must have been his too vivid imagination which had run away
with him.

"Good gracious!" he sighed, "I must have a tendency to madness!
Besides, it is insufferably hot in here! the blood is rushing to my head!"
And now he remembered his great adventure of the previous evening ;
how his head had stuck fast between the iron railings of the hospital.
"That 's where I must have caught it!" he thought. "I must do some-
thing at once. A Russian bath would be a good thing. I wish I were
lying on the uppermost shelf of one."

And so he found himself lying on the uppermost shelf in a vapor
bath, but he was lying with all his clothes on, in his boots and with the
galoshes on ; the hot drops of water from the ceiling were dripping onto
his face.

"Ugh ! " he cried, and sprang down from the shelf to get a shower-bath.
The attendant uttered a loud cry on seeing a person with all his clothes on
in the bath.

The student had, however, sufficient presence of mind to whisper
to him: "It is a wager"; but the first thing he did when he got to
his own room was to get a large blister on the back of his neck, and
another down his back, in order to draw out the madness. Next morn-
ing his back was quite raw ; and that was all he gained by the galoshes of
fortune.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 71

V. THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE CLERK

In the meantime the watchman, whom we are not hkely to have
forgotten, bethought himself of the galoshes, which he had found and
taken with him to the hospital; he called there for them, but as neither the
lieutenant nor anybody else living in the street would own them, he took
them to the police station.

"They look exactly like my own galoshes!" said one of the clerks in
the office, looking at them and placing them beside his own. " It requires
more than a shoemaker's eye to know one pair from another ! "

A constable now came in with some papers for the clerk, who turned
round to talk to him; but when he had done with him and again looked
at the galoshes, he was quite uncertain whether it was the pair on the left
or on the right which belonged to him. " It must be the soiled ones that
are mine!" he thought; but he was mistaken, for they were the galoshes
of fortune ; besides, why should not the police be mistaken sometimes .?
He put on the galoshes, stuck some papers in his pocket and some others
under his arm; he had to take them home to read them through and copy
them. But it happened to be Sunday morning, and as the weather was
tine he thought that a walk as tar as Frederiksberg would do him good ;
and off he went.

No one could be a more steady and diligent person than this young
man. We hope he will enjoy his little walk; it will do him a great deal
of good after so much sitting. At tirst he only walked on without think-
ing of anything, and the galoshes had therefore no opportunity of showing
their magic power.

In the avenue he met an acquaintance, a young poet, who told him
that he was going to set out on his summer trip next day.

"So vou are off again!" said the clerk; "you are a lucky man to be
so free. Vou can i\y wherever you like, while we others are chained by
the foot!"

"But the foot is tixed to the tree that gives you bread," said the poet.
"You need not trouble for the morrow, and, when you grow old, you get
a pension.

"But you are best off," said the clerk; "to sit and write verses is a
pleasure. The whole world says pleasant things to you, and, besides, you
are your own master. You should try sitting in court and attending to
the trivial matters there."

The poet shook his head, and the clerk shook his also ; each of them
stuck to his own opinion, and so they parted. "They are a peculiar race
of people, these poets!" said the clerk; "I should like to enter into such
a nature, to become a poet myself. I am sure I should not write such
whimpering verses as the others do! This is truly a spring day tor a

72 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

poet ! The air is so wonderfully clear, the clouds are so magnificent, and
the trees and greensward smell so sweet. Ah ! I have not felt like this
for many years! "

We can already notice that he had become a poet; not that it was
noticeable in his appearance, for it is foolish to suppose that a poet is
different from other people, among whom you may find far more poetical
natures than in many of the great poets we recognize. The difference is
simply that the poet has a better intellectual memory ; he can retain the
idea and the feeling till they are clearly and plainly embodied in words,
which the others cannot do. But to be transformed from a commonplace
nature to a more highly gifted one is always a wonderful transition ; and
that is what happened to the clerk.

"What a delicious fragrance! " he said; "how it reminds me o( the
violets at Aunty Loue's ! Ah ! I was a little boy then ! Bless me, I have
not thought of that for many a day! The good old lady! She lived just
behind the Exchange. She always kept a twig or a couple of green
shoots in water, no matter how severe the winter was. The scent of the
violets pervaded the whole room, while I put hot copper pennies against
the frozen window-panes to make peep-holes.

" What an interesting view it was ! Out in the canal lay the ice-bound
ships, quite deserted by their crews; a screaming crow was the only living
creature on board. But when the spring came, a busy life began ; amid
singing and cheering the ice was sawed in pieces, the ships were tarred and
rigged, and set sail for foreign lands; but I remain here, and must always
remain sitting here in the police office, and see others taking out their
passports to go abroad. That 's my lot, alas, alas!" he sighed deeply, but
stopped suddenly. "Bless me, what is the matter with me? I have
never thought or felt like this before. It must be the spring air. I feel
both anxious and happy."

He felt in his pocket for his papers. "These will give me something
else to think about," he said, and let his eyes wander over the first page.
" ' Sigbrith, an Original Tragedy in Five Acts,' " he read. " What 's this ? —
and it's in my own handwriting! Have I written this tragedy? 'The
Intrigue on the Ramparts, or the Day of Prayer' — a vaudeville. Where
can I have got this from ? Somebody must have put it in my pocket !
Why — here 's a letter!" It was from the manager of the theater; the
plays were rejected, and the letter was not at all politely worded. " H'm,
h'm ! " said the clerk, and sat down on a bench ; his imagination was all
alive, and his heart was quite tender ; unconsciously he seized hold of one
of the nearest flowers ; it was a simple little daisy ; the flower told him in a
minute what would take a botanist many lectures to explain. It told him
about the myth of its birth, about the power of the sunlight, which
expanded its delicate leaves and made it so fragrant. He then thought of
the struggles of life, which likewise awaken feelings in our hearts. Ligbt

t'HE UPPER VVUNDOW IS OPEN," bAIlJ IHK CANAk\ . ■■Kl.vi KLV AWAV!"

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 75

and air courted the flower, but light was the favored one;, it leaned toward
the light ; if this vanished the flower rolled its leaves together, and went to
sleep embraced by the air. "It is the light which adorns me," said the
flower; "but the air gives you the breath of life!" whispered the voice ot
the poet.

Close by stood a boy, striking with his stick into the muddy ditch ; the
drops of water spurted up amongst the green branches, and the clerk
thought of the millions of invisible animalcules in the drops which were
cast so high in the air, that in proportion to their size it would be the
same as if we were whirled up high above the clouds.

As the clerk thought of this, and the great change that had taken
place in him, he smiled and said : " I must be asleep and dreaming. It is
most remarkable in any case. How naturally one can dream, and at the
same time know it is only a dream ! I wish I could remember it to-mor-
row, when I wake up; just now I seem to be quite unusually fit for
anything. I can see everything so clearly, and feel so wide awake and
bright, but I am sure that if I recollect anything of it to-morrow, it will
only be nonsense; I have experienced it before. It is just the same with
all the wise and splendid things one learns and says in dreams, as with the
gold of supernatural beings, when you receive it, it is bright and sparkling,
but by daylight it is only stones and withered leaves. Alas!" he sighed,
quite sadly, looking at the birds that were singing and hopping from
branch to branch, "they are far better ofl' than I. To fly — that must be
a splendid gift of nature — happy is he who is born with it! Yes, if I
were to wish to change into anything, it would be into a little lark."

At the same moment the tails and sleeves of his coat grew into wings,
his clothes turned into feathers, and the galoshes into claws. He noticed
this quite plainly, and laughed to himself: "Well, now I can see I am
dreaming. But never have I dreamed anything so foolish before"; and he
flew up among the green branches and began to sing; but there was no
poetry in his song, for the poetical nature was gone. The galoshes, like
every one who does his business thoroughly, could only do one thing at a
time; he wanted to be a poet, and he became one; now he wanted to be
a little bird, but on changing into this his former characteristics disap-
peared.

"This is very funny indeed!" said he. "In the daytime I sit in the
police office among the most voluminous documents, and at night I dream
I am flying about as a lark in Frederiksberg Garden ; one could write quite
a comedy about it."

He then flew down into the grass, turned his head from one side to
the other, and struck his beak at the pliant blades of grass, which, in
proportion to his present size, appeared to him as large as the branches of
the North-African palms.

The next moment everything around him became as black as the

76 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

darkest night; it seemed to him as if some enormous object had been
thrown over him. It was a large cap which a boy from Nyboder had
thrown over the bird; a hand was pushed in under the cap, and the clerk
was seized round the back and wings so that he squeaked. In his first
fright he cried aloud : " You impudent whelp ! I am a clerk in the police
office!" But to the boy it only sounded like "tweet, tweet!" He gave
the bird a tap on its beak and walked off with it.

In the avenue he met a couple of school-boys of the better class, that is
to say, as far as their station in life was concerned, but as regards intellect,
they belonged to the lowest class in the school. They bought the bird
for fourpence, and in this way the clerk was brought back to Copenhagen
to a family which lived in Gothers Street.

"It is a good thing that I am dreaming," said the clerk, "otherwise I
should become quite angry. First I was a poet, now I am a lark. Ah !
it was that poetical spirit in me that transformed me into this little
creature. It is a wretched state of affairs, especially when one falls into the
hands of boys. I should like to know how all this is going to end."

The boy took him into a very elegant room; a stout smiling lady
received them, but she was not at all pleased at the common field-bird,
as she called the lark, being brought into the house; still she would allow
it just for one day, but they would have to put the bird into the empty
cage over by the window. "Perhaps it will please Polly," she said, smil-
ing at a large green parrot which was swinging majestically on her ring in
the pretty brass cage. "It 's Polly's birthday," she said, in her foolish,
naive way, "and the little field-bird has come to congratulate her."

Polly did not answer a single word, but went on swinging to and fro
in her majestic way; but a pretty canary, which had been brought there
last summer from his warm, balmy home, began to sing loudly.

"You squealing thing! " said the lady, and threw a white handkerchief
over the cage.

"Tweet, tweet!" sighed the bird, "what a terrible snowstorm!" and
settled down in silence with a sigh.

The clerk, or the field-bird, as the lady of the house called him, was
put in a little cage close to the canary and not far from the parrot. The
only sentence which Polly could scream out, and which often came in
most comically, was : "Come, let us be human!" Everything else she
screamed v/as as unintelligible as the twittering of the canary; but not to
the clerk, who was now himself a bird; he understood his comrades very
well.

" I used to fly under the green palms and the blossoming almond-tree ! "
sang the canary. "I used to fly with my brothers and sisters over the
gorgeous flowers and over the crystal lake, where the plants waved to and
fro. I also saw many beautiful parrots who told me the funniest stories,
ever so long and ever so many."

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

"But thev were wild birds!" answered the parrot, "they had no
education. No, come, let us be human ! Why don't you laugh ? If our
mistress and all the strangers can laugh at it, why don't you do so as
well? No, come, let us be human!"

THE NEXT MOMENT HE WAS THE CLERK ONCE MORE, BUT HE FOUND HIMSELF
sriTINC, OX THE TABLE IN HIS ROOM.

' Do you remember the pretty girls, who danced under the awning
near the blossoming trees? Do yoii remember the sweet fruits and the
cooling juice of the wild plants?"

"Oh, yes!" said the parrot, "but I am much better otf here ! I have
good food, and am treated in the most friendly way; I know I have a
good head, and want for nothing more. Come, let us be human ! You
have the soul of a poet, as they call it; I have sound knowledge and wit.
You possess genuis, but no discretion; you indulge in those high natural
tones of vours, and therefore' they cover you up ! They dare not treat

78 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

me like that! Oh, no, I cost them a good deal more! I impress them
with my beak and can crack a joke. Wit ! wit ! wit ! Come, let us be
human ! "

"Oh, for the warm and balmy land of my birth ! " sang the canary. " I
will sing about your dark, green trees, about your calm bays, where the
branches kiss the bright surface of the water; I will sing about the joys of
my resplendent brothers and sisters, where the cactus grows."

"Do stop those whimpering tones!" said the parrot. "Say something
that '11 make one laugh. Laughter is a sign of the highest intellectual de-
velopment. Can a dog or a horse laugh .? No, they can weep, but it is
only given to man to laugh. Ho, ho, ho!" laughed the parrot, adding his
witty saying: "Come, let us be human!"

"You little gray Danish bird," said the canary, "you, too, are a prisoner!
It must be cold in your forests, but you have liberty there, at any rate!
Fly away! They have forgotten to close your cage, and the upper window-
is open. Fly! Flyaway!"

And the clerk did so, and the next moment he was out of the cage;
just then the half-open door, leading to the next room, creaked, and the cat
with its green, glistening eyes crept stealthily into the room and started in
pursuit of him. The canary fluttered in its cage and the parrot flapped its
wings and screamed: "Come, let us be human." The clerk was in a
terrible fright, and flew away through the window and over the houses and
streets, till at last he was obliged to rest a little.

The house opposite seemed familiar to him; the window stood open, he
flew in. It was his own room. He perched on the table. " Come, let
us be human!" he said, mimicking the parrot without thinking of what
he said ; and the next moment he was the clerk once more, but he
found himself sitting on the table.

"Good gracious!" he said, "how did I get up here and fall asleep in
this way! That was an uneasy dream I had! W hat a lot of silly nonsense
it was."

VI. THE BEST THING THE GALOSHES BROUGHT

Early in the morning of the following day, as the clerk still lay in bed,
there came a knock at his door; it was his neighbor on the same tioor, a
theological student, who came into the room.

"Will you lend me your galoshes?" he asked, "it's so wet in the
garden, but the sun is shining brightly and I should like to smoke a pipe
down there ! "

He put on the galoshes and soon found himself in the garden. There
was only a plum-tree and a pear-tree, but even such a small garden is greatly
prized in Copenhagen.

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 79

The student walked up and down the path; it was only six o'clock ; he
heard the horn of the mail coach in the street.

"Ah, to travel ! to travel!" he exclaimed, "after all, that is the most
delightful thing in the world! That is the highest goal of my
ambition! Then all this restlessness which I feel would subside.
But I must go far, far away! I should like to see beautiful Switzer-
land, to travel in Italy, and — "

It was a good thing that the galoshes began to apply their
magic power at once, or else he would have gone too far away
altogether, both for his own convenience and ours. He was now on
his travels, in the midst of Switzerland, packed together with eight
other people inside a diligence, his head ached, he felt a weary pain in
his neck, and his feet, which were swollen and pressed by his boots,
had gone to sleep. He was in a half-sleeping, half-waking condition.
In his right-hand pocket he had his letter of credit, and in his left-hand
pocket his passport, and in a small leather bag, which he wore on his breast,
some louis d'or were sewed up; every time he dozed off, he thought that
one or the other of these valuable things had been lost, and would therefore
awake with a feverish start, and the first movement his hand would make
was a triangular one from the right to the left and up to his breast, to feel if
he had them still in his possession. Umbrellas, sticks, and hats were swinging
to and fro in the net above, and to a certain extent shut out the view, which
was highly impressive; he just glanced at it while his heart sang what at
least one poet whom we know, has sung in Switzerland, but which has not
as yet been printed: —

Here, 'neath the splendor of Mont Blanc,
With awe-filled heart, my love, I wander,
Were purse as full as heart — then long
And happy days we'd live and squander!

The scenery around was grand, impressive, and gloomy ; the pine forests
looked like the tops of heather on the lofty rocks, the summit of which was
hidden in clouds of mist. It began to snow and the wind blew cold.

"Ugh!" he sighed, "I wish we were on the other side of the Alps!
Then we should have summer, and I should have drawn out the money for
my letter of credit. I am so anxious about this money, that I do not enjoy
Switzerland! Oh, that I were on the other side!"

And he was on the other side, far down into Italy, between Florence
and Rome.

The lake of Thrasimene lay like a sheet of fiaming gold in the sunset
between dark-blue mountains; here, where Hannibal defeated Flaminius,
the vines now grew peacefully, clutching each other by their green fingers";
and pretty, half-naked children were tending a herd of coal-black swine

80 THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE

under a clump of fragrant laurels near the roadside. If we could reproduce
such a picture accurately every one would exclaim: "Glorious Italy!" but
neither the theological student nor any of his traveling companions in the
diligence said anything of the kind.

Thousands ot venomous tlies and mosquitoes swarmed into the coach,
the passengers trying in vain to beat them off with sprigs of myrtle; the
flies stung in spite of all their exertions; there was not a person in the
coach whose face was not swollen and red from their bites. The poor
horses looked like carrion; the flies clung in big swarms to them, and it
was only a momentary relief when the driver got down and scraped off
the insects. The sun was now setting; a sharp, icy cold pervaded all na-
ture ; it was not at all pleasant, but all around the hills and clouds assumed
the most lovely green tint, so clear, so bright; well, take a trip there and
see for yourself; that is better than reading a description of it! It was a
glorious sight ! The travelers thought so too, but their stomachs were
empty, their bodies tired, and all that their hearts yearned for was quarters
for the night.

But what would they he like - The passengers were looking tar more
eagerly for these than for the beauties of nature.

The road passed through an olive wood ; it seemed to the student as it
he was driving between the knotty willows in his own country. Here
stood the lonely inn, outside which a dozen crippled beggars were stretched;
the strongest of them looked like "hunger's eldest son just come to the
years of manhood," as Marryat says. The others were either blind, or had
withered legs, and crept about on their hands, or gaunt arms with tinger-
less hands. It was real misery, dragged out from its rags.

" Eccellenza, miserabili ! " they moaned, as they stretched out their dis-
abled limbs. The landlady herself, with bare feet, uncombed hair, and
dressed in a dirty blouse, received the guests. The doors were tied up with
string, and the tloors in the room presented the appearance of a broken-up
roadway paved with bricks ; bats were tiying about under the ceilings, and
the stench

"She might lay the table down in the stables!" said one of the pas-
sengers, "there we should know what it was we were breathing!"

The windows were opened to let in a little fresh air, but quicker than
this came in the gaunt arms, and the everlasting whines ot "miserabili,
Eccellenza ! '

On the walls were many inscriptions, half of which were invectives
against la bella Italia.

The meal was now served; it consisted of some watery soup, seasoned
with pepper and rancid oil, the same kind of oil being also used for the
salad; musty eggs and fried cocks-combs were the principal dishes. Even
the wine had a disagreeable taste; it was like a black draught!

All the trunks were placed against the door for the night, and one of

THE GALOSHES OF FORTUNE 81

the travelers was to keep watch while the others slept. This fell to the
lot of the theological student. Oh, how suffocating the air was in the
room ! The heat was oppressive, the mosquitoes were buzzing about and
stinging, while the " miserabili " outside were heard whining in their sleep.

''Yes, traveling is all very well ! " sighed the student, "if only one was
not troubled with a body ! If that could rest and the spirit fly ! Wherever
I go I feel a void which oppresses my heart; I want something better than
the momentary, yes, something better— in fact, the best. But where and
what is it? I think, however, I know what I really want. I want to reach
a happy goal, the happiest of all! "

No sooner had he spoken these words than he was in his own home,
the long white curtains were drawn across the window, and in the middle
of the room stood a black coffin in which he was lying in his peaceful sleep
of death. His wish had been fulfilled, the body rested, the spirit had fled.
The truth of Solon's words, "Call no man happy until he is in his grave,"
were here again confirmed.

Every dead body is a sphinx of immortality. Nor did the sphinx in
this black coffin solve what the living being two days before had written:

Oh, might}- Deatli, thy silence strikt-s me dumb I
'T is but tlie churchyard graves that hear thy tread!
Our thought that scales the heavens, must it come
To naught V Is grass the only rising of the dead"?

The world knows nothing of our greatest pain:
Thou wert in solitude unto the end !
In life worse presses upon heart and brain
Than heavy clods that on thy coffin-lid tlescend!

Two figures were moving about in the room ; we know them both.
They were the two fairies. Care and the messenger of Fortune ; they were
bending over the dead body. "Do you see," said Care, "what fortune
vour galoshes brought mankind after all?"

"They brought, at least, a lasting benefit to him who sleeps here,"
answered Fortune's messenger.

"Oh, no," said Care. "He passed away by his own wish; he was not
called. His intellectual power here was not strong enough to raise the
treasures yonder, which he, according to his destiny, had to raise. I will
do him an act of kindness."

She then pulled the galoshes off his feet; the sleep of death was over,
the dead man came to life again, and raised himself.

Care vanished, and with her the galoshes ; she, no doubt, considered
them her property.

AUNTY TOOTHACHE

JRAXr. ATTACK OF TOOTHACHE WAS COMING Ot

AUNTY TOOTHACHE

WHERI^^ did we get this story?
Would you like to know ?
We got it from the tub in which the waste paper is kept.

Many a good and rare old book has found its way to the butterman's
and the grocer's, not to be read, but to be used as packing paper for starch
and coffee, or to wrap up salted herrings, butter, and cheese. Manu-
scripts and letters also lind their way to the tub.

We often throw into the waste-paper tub what ought not to go there.

I know a grocer's assistant, the son of a butterman ; he has risen from
serving in the cellar to serving in the front shop, and is a well-read person,
his reading consisting of the matter, printed and written, found on the pa-
per he used for packing. He has an interesting collection; and in this are
to be found many important official documents from the waste-paper bas-
kets ot several busy and absent-minded officials, a few confidential letters
from one lady friend to another — bits of scandal which were to go no
further, and were not to be mentioned by any one. He is a living sal-
vage-institution for not an inconsiderable portion of our literature, and his
collection covers a wide field; he has the run of his parents' shop and that
of his present master, and has there saved many a book, or leaves of a book,
well worth reading more than once.

He has shown me his collection of printed and written matter from
the waste-paper tub; the most valuable has come from the butterman's.
I noticed a couple of leaves from a large exercise book; the unusually
clear and neat handwriting attracted my attention at once.

"That 's what the student wrote," he said; "the student who lived
opposite here and died about a month ago. One can see he must have
suffered terribly from toothache. It is very interesting reading. This is
only part of what he wrote; there was a whole book and more besides;
my parents gave the student's landlady half a pound of soft soap for it.
This is all I have been able to save."

I borrowed it, I read it, and now I give it to the world.

The title was:

86 AUNTY TOOTHACHE

AUNTY TOOTHACHE

Auntv used to give me sweets when I was a little boy.

My teeth did not suffer; they were not injured; now I am older, and
I am a student; still she goes on spoiling me with sweets, and says I am
a poet.

I have something of the poet in me, hut not enough. Otten when I
go about the streets, it seems to me as if I am walking in a big library ;
the houses are the bookshelves; and every floor is a shelf with books.
There stands a story of everv-day life; next to it a good old comedy, and
scientific works in all branches, and here are books of good reading and
books of bad reading. Over all this wealth of literature I can dream
and philosophize.

There is something of the poet in me, but not enough. No doubt
many people have just as much of it in them as I, yet they do not carry a
badge or a necktie with the word "Poet" on it. They and I have been
endowed with a divine gift, a blessing great enough to satisfy oneself, but
altogether too insignificant to be portioned out again to others. It comes
like a ray of sunlight, and fills one's soul and thoughts; it comes like a
fragrant breeze, like a melody which one knows but without remembering
whence it comes.

The other evening I sat in mv room and felt inclined to read, but I
had no book, no paper. Just then a leaf, fresh and green, tell trom the
lime-tree, and the breeze carried it in through the window to me.

I examined the manv veins in it; a little insect was crawling across
them, as if it were making a thorough study of the leaf. This led me to
think of all the wisdom that we men lay claim to; we also crawl about
on a leaf, our knowledge being limited only to that; yet we are ready
to deliver a lecture on the whole tree — the root, the trunk, and the
crown; the great tree — God, the world, and immortality; — and ot all
this we know only the little leaf.

As I was sitting meditating thus, I received a visit from Aunty Milly.

I showed her the leaf and the insect, and told her of all the thoughts
thev had awakened in me, whereat her eyes sparkled.

"You are a poet!" she said; "perhaps the greatest we have. If I
should live to see this, I would gladly lie down and die. Ever since Ras-
mussen the brewer's funeral you have astonished me with your powerful
imagination."

This is what Aunty Milly said, and then she kissed me.

Who was Aunty Milly, and who was Rasmussen the brewer.?

AUNTY TOOTHACHE 87

We children always called our mother's aunt "Auntv"; we had no
other name tor her.

She gave us jam and sweets, although thev were verv injurious to our
teeth; but the dear children were her weakness, as she ut-ed to sav. It
was a shame to deny them a few sweets, when thev were so fond of them.

And that 's whv we loved auntv so much.

She was an old maid, and as tar back as I can remember she was
always old. She seemed always to be the same age.

In earlier years she had suffered a great deal from toothache, and was
always talking about it; and so it happened that her friend, Mr. Rasmussen,
the brewer, called her Aunty Toothache, just to show his wit.

He had left off brewing some years before, and was now living upon
the interest ot his money, and used to come and visit aunty. He was
older than she, and had no teeth at all — only some black stumps.

When a child he had eaten too much sugar, he told us children, and
that 's how he came to look as he did.

Auntv could surelv never have eaten sugar when she was vounsj, for
she had the most beautiful teeth.

She took great care of theni, and she did not sleep in them at night
— so Rasmussen the brewer said. The children knew that this was said in
malice, but aunty declared he did not mean anything bv it.

One morning, after breakfast, she told us of a terrible dream she had
had in the night, and that one of her teeth had fallen out.

"That means," she said, "that I shall lose a true friend! "

"Was it a false tooth?" asked the brewer with a smile; "if so, it can
only mean that you will lose a false friend!"

"You are a rude old man! " said auntv, angrier than I have ever seen
her before or since.

Afterward she told us that her old friend had only been teasing her;
he was the noblest being on earth, and when he died he would become
one ot God's angels in heaven.

I thought a good deal oi this transformation, and wondered whether
I should be able to recognize him in this new character.

When auntv and he were young people, he had proposed to her. She
had taken too long to think it over, and had settled down all by herself
and become an old maid, but always remained his true friend.

And then Rasmussen died.

He was conveyed to his grave in the most expensive hearse, and was
followed by a great number of people, many with orders and in uniform.

Aunty stood dressed in mourning by the window, together with all ot us
children, except our little brother whom the stork had brought a week ago.

88 AUNTY TOOTHACHE

The hearse and the procession had just passed, the street was empty,
and aunty wanted to go away from the window, but I did not want to ;
I was waiting for the angel, Rasmussen the brewer; for had n't he now
become one of God's bewinged children, and would n't he appear now ?

"Aunty," I said, "don't vou think he will come now? Or, when the
stork again brings us a little brother, won't he then bring us the angel
Rasmussen ?"

Aunty was quite overwhelmed by my flight of imagination, and said :
"That child will become a great poet!" And this she kept on repeating
all the time I went to school, and even after I was conhrmed and had
become a student.

She was, and is, to me the most sympathetic of friends, both in my
poetical and dental troubles, for I have attacks of both.

"Only write down your ideas," she said, "and put them in the table
drawer ! That 's what Jean Paul did ; he became a great poet, though I
don't admire him; he does not excite one. You must be exciting, and I
know you will ! "

During the night I lay awake, full of longings and anguish, full of
desire and anxiety to become the great poet that aunty saw and perceived
in me; I went through all the agonies of a poet! But there is a still
greater agony — toothache; it was grinding and crushing me, and I became
a writhing worm, with a poultice of sweet herbs and mustard plaster round
my face.

" I know all about it," said aunty. There was a sorrowful smile on
her lips, and her white teeth glistened.

Hut I must begin a new chapter in my own and my aunt's history.

Ill

I had removed to new lodgings, where I had been living a month. I
was telling aunty about them.

I live with a quiet family ; they do not trouble themselves about me,
even if I ring three times. Otherwise it is a noisy house, full of sounds
and disturbances caused by the weather, the wind, and the people. ' I live
just over the gateway ; every cart that drives out or in makes the pictures
on the walls move to and fro. The gate bangs and shakes the whole
house, as if there was an earthquake. If I am in bed the shocks go right
through all my limbs, but they say that is strengthening to the nerves. If
it blows, and it is always blowing in our country, the long window-hooks
outside swing to and fro, and strike against the wall. The bell in the
neighbor's yard rings with every gust of wind.

AUNTY TOOTHACHE 89

The people living in the house come home at all hours, from late in
the evening till far into the night; the lodger just above me, who in the
daytime gives lessons on the trombone, comes home last of all, and does
not go to bed till he has taken a short midnight promenade with heavy
steps and iron-heeled boots.

We have not double windows, but there is a brt)keii pane in my room,
over which the landlady has pasted some paper; but the wind blows
through the crack for all that, and produces a sound something like a
buzzing wasp. It is the kind of music which sends one to sleep. If at
last I fall asleep, I am soon awakened by the crowing of the cocks. From
the cellarman's hen-coop the cocks and hens announce that morning is
approaching. The small ponies, which have no stable, but are tied up in
the store-room under the staircase, kick against the door and the boarding
whenever they move their legs.

The day dawns ; the porter, who lives with his family in the garret,
comes thundering down the stairs; his clogs clatter along the passages, the
gate bangs and the house shakes, and, when all this is over, the lodger
above begins his gymnastic exercises ; he lifts a heavy iron ball in his hand,
but, as he is not able to hold it, it is constantly falling on the floor, while
at the same time the young folks in the house, who go to school, come
tearing along, screaming with all their might. I go to the window and
open it to get some fresh air, which I consider most refreshing when I can
get it, and when the young woman in the back building is not washing
gloves in soap-suds, by which work she makes a living. Otherwise it 's a
nice house, and I live with a quiet family !

This was the account I gave aunty about my lodgings, only it was in
a more lively style ; the spoken word has a fresher sound than the written.

"You are a poet ! " cried aunty. " Only put down all vou have said,
and you will be as good as Dickens. Well, to me, of course you are much
more interesting. You paint when you speak. You describe the house
you live in as if one saw it before one's eyes. It makes me shudder. Go
on with your work. Put some living beings into it — some people, beau-
tiful men and women, and — especially unhappy ones."

I wrote down my description of the house as it now stands, with all
its faults, and included only myself There was no plot in it. That comes
later on.

It was in the winter, late at night, after theater hours ; it was terrible
weather ; a snow-storm was raging, so that one could hardly get along.

Aunty had gone to the theater, and I went to take her home; but it
was ditficult enough to get along by one's self, to say nothing of helping

90 AUNTY TOOTHACHE

any one else. All the carriages were engaged. Aunty lived in the out-
skirts of the town, while my lodgings were close to the theater. It" it had
not been for this, we should have had to take refuge for a time in a
sentry-box.

We trudged along in the deep 8no\\- with the snow-flakes whirling
around us. I had to lift her, support her, and push her along. Only twice
did we fall, but we fell on soft ground.

We reached my gate, where we shook off some of the snow. On the
stairs also we shook some off, but there was still enough almost to cover
the floor of the anteroom.

We took off our outer wraps and galoshes, and everything else we could
divest ourselves of The landlady lent aunty drv stockings and a night-
cap ; she would be sure to want it, said the landlady, for, as she rightly
added, it would be impossible for my aunt to get home that night; and .so
she asked her to make use of her parlor, where she would make a bed for
her on the sofa, in front of the door leading into my room, which was al-
ways kept locked.

And aunty agreed to the arrangement.

The fire burned in my stove, the tea urn came on the table, and the
little room began to look cozy, if not quite so cozy as aunty's, where in
the winter time there are thick portieres before the door, thick curtains
before the windows, and double carpets on the floor, with three layers of
thick paper underneath. One sits there as if in a well-corked bottle, full
o\' warm air; still, as I have said, my room also was pleasant and warm,
while outside the wind was whistling.

Auntv talked and talked; the davs of her youth came hack; the brewer
returned — all her old memories were revived.

She could remember when I got my first tooth, and how the family
rejoiced.

My first tooth ! The tooth of innocence, shining like a little drop of
milk — the milk-tooth!

The first had come, then came more — a whole row, side by side, at
the top and at the bottom, the prettiest of children's teeth; but only the
first ones, not the real ones, which have to last one's whole lifetime

They also appeared, and the wisdom-teeth as well, the fuglemen in the
row, born in pain and great tribulation.

They disappear again, every one of them ; thev disappear before the
time of service is up — the very last one has gone, and it is not a day for
rejoicing; it is a day for mourning.

So one begins to feel old, although one is young at heart.

Such reflections and such conversations are not pleasant. Yet we came
to talk about all this; we went back to the days of my childhood, and
talked and talked. It was twelve o'clock before aunty went to rest in the
room close by.

AUNTY TOOTHACHE 93

"Good night, my dear child," she said. " I shall sleep as if I lay in
my own four-poster."

And she slept peacefully ; but peace did not reign either within the
house or without. The storm rattled the windows, struck the wall with
the long, dangling iron hooks, and rang the neighbor's bell in the back-
yard. The lodger up-stairs had come home. He was still taking his nightly
promenade up and down the room ; he then kicked off his boots, and
went to bed and to rest; but he snores, so that anv one with good ears can
hear him through the ceiling.

I found no peace, no rest ; nor did the weather take any rest ; it was
unusually lively. The wind howled and sang in its own way ; my teeth
also began to be lively and thev hummed and sang in their way. A grand
attack of toothache was coming on.

Draughty gusts came from the window. The moon shone through
the window upon the riot)r ; the light came and went as the clouds rolled
by in the stormy weather. There was an unceasing change of light and
shadow, until at last the shadow on the floor began to take shape. I stared
at the apparition, and felt an icy cold gust against my face.

On the floor sat a thin, long flgure, just like what a child would draw
with a pencil on its slate; something like a human being — a single thin
line formed the body, another line or two made the arms, and the legs
were only indicated by a single line for each, and the head by angular
lines.

The flgure soon became more distinct; it was draped with a very thin
and flne kind of stufl^', clearly showing that the flgure was that of a woman.

I heard a buzzing sound. Was it she or the wind, which was buzzing
like a hornet through the crack in the pane?

No, it was she, Mistress Toothache ! Her terrible highness, Satauia
Infernalis ! Heaven deliver and preserve us from her visits!

"How cozy it is here!" she buzzed; "these are nice quarters —
marshy ground, boggy ground ! Here the gnats have been buzzing with
poison in their stings; I have a sting, and it must be sharpened on human
teeth. Those over in the bed shine so brightly. They have defled sweet
and sour things, heat and cold, nutshells and plum-stones; but I shall
shake them to their roots, I shall stretch them on the rack, and feed their
roots with draughty winds and chilly blasts!"

They were terrible words! — She is a terrible visitor!

"So you are a poet!" she said. "Well, I '11 coach you in all the
meters of toothache! I '11 thrust iron and steel into your body! I '11
seize all the fibers of your nerves!"

I felt as if a red-hot awl passed through my cheek-bone; I writhed
and twisted in my bed.

"A splendid row of teeth to play upon! just like an organ!" she said.
"We shall have a grand concert on jews'-harps, with kettle-drums and

AUNTY TOOTHACHE

trumpets, piccolo-flute, and trombone in- the wisdom-tooth ! Grand poet,
grand music! "

And then she started the performance.

She looked terrible, although one did not see more of her than her
hand, the shadowy, gray, ice-cold hand, with the long, thin, pointed fin-

gers; each of them was an instrument of torture; the thumb and the fore-
finger were pincers and wrench, the middle finger ended in a pointed awl,
the ring finger was an auger, and the little finger a squirt with gnat's
poison.

"I '11 teach you the right meter!" she said. "A great poet must
have a great toothache, a little poet a little toothache!"

AUNTY TOOTHACHE 95

"Oh, consider me then a httlc poet!" I prayed. "Consider me no-
thing at all! And I am not a poet; I have only tits of poetry like tits of
toothache. Leave me, oh leave me!"

"Will you acknowledge, then, that I am mightier than poetrv, philos-
ophy, mathematics, and all the music?" she said. "Mightier than all
these notions that are painted on canvas or hewn in marble.? I am older
than any of them. I was horn close to the Garden of Paradise, just out-
side, where the wind blew and the wet toadstools grew. It was I who
made Eve put on clothes in the cold weather, and Adam also. There
was manifestation ot power in the iirst toothache, I can tell you!"

"I believe it all," I said. "But leave me, oh leave me!"

" Ves, if you will give up being a poet, ne\er put verse on paper, slate,
or any kind of writing material, then I will let vou off; but I shall come
again, my poet ! "

"I swear!" I said; "only let me never see or teel vou anv more!"

"See me you shall, but in a more substantial shape, in a shape more
dear to you than I am at present. \'ou shall see me as Auntv Milly, and
I will say : ' Write poetry, my dear boy ! You are a great poet, perhaps
the greatest we have ! ' But if you believe me, and you begin to write
poetry, then I will set music to your verses, and play them on your mouth-
t)rgan. You dear child! Remember me, when vou see Auntv Millv !"

And then she vanished.

At parting I received something like the thrust of a red-hot awl
through my cheek-bone, but it soon subsided. I felt as if I were gliding
along the smooth water; I saw how the white water-lilies, with their
large green leaves, bent and sank down under me; how they withered and
perished, and how I sank with them; how I was set free and found peace
and rest.

"To die, to melt away like snow!" resounded in the water; "to
evaporate into air, to sail away like the clouds!"

Great shining names and inscriptions on waving banners of victory, the
letters patent of immortality, written on the wing of an ephemera, shone
down to me through the water.

The sleep was deep, a sleep without dreams. I did not hear the
whistling wind, the banging gate, the neighbor's noisy bell, or the
gymnastics of the lodger.

What happiness !

Then came a sudden gust of wind, so that the locked door to aunty's
room burst open. Aunty jumped up, got dressed, and came into my room.

I slept like one of (Jod's angels, she said, and had not the heart to
wake me.

I awoke later on and opened my eyes, but did not remember that
auntv was in the ht)use ; but I soon remembered it — and also my tooth-
ache vision.

AUNTY TOOTHACHE

Dream and reality were blended.

" I suppose you did not write anything last night after we said good-
night ? " she said. "I wish you had; you are mv poet, and shall remain
so!"

I thought that she smiled somewhat slyly. I did not know it" it were
the Aunty iVIilly who loved me, or the terrible one to whom I had made
the promise of last night.

"Have you written any poetry, dear child ?"

"No, no ! " I shouted. "Are you really Aunty Milly ?"

"Who else?" she said. It was really Aunty Milly.

She kissed me, got into a carriage, and drove home.

I jotted down what is written here. It is not in verse, and it shall never
be printed.

Here ended the manuscript.

My young friend, the grocer's assistant, could not find the missing
sheets; they had gone out into the world like the papers round the salted
herrings, the butter, and the soft soap; they had fulfilled their destiny !

The brewer is dead, aunty is dead, the student is dead, he whose sparks
of genius went into the tub. Nota bene — everything goes into the tub.
This is the end of the story — the story of Aunty Toothache.

THE TINDER-BOX

.{ i

-1

'^i/

=«# '. ■

THt WITCH HOISTED THE SOLDIER UP FROM THE HOLLOW TREE.

THE TINDER-BOX

A SOLDIER came marching along the high road: one, two! one,
two ! He had his knapsack, on his back and a sword by his side,
tor he had been in the wars, and he was now on his way home. He
met an old witch on the road; she was a hideous-looking creature; her
under-lip hung right down upon her breast.

"CJood evening, soldier," she said. " What a fine sword, and what a
big knapsack you have got. You are a real soldier ! You shall have as
much money as you want."

"Thank you, old witch," said the soldier.

"Do you see that tree?" said the witch, pointing at the tree which
stood beside them. " It is quite hollow inside. ^'ou must climb to the

100 THE TINDER-BOX

top, where you will see a hole through which you can let yourself slide
down, and get far down into the tree. I '11 tie a rope round your waist,
so that I can pull you up again when you call me."

"What shall I do down in the tree, then.?" asked the soldier.

"Fetch money," said the witch. "You must know that when you
get to the bottom of the tree you will rind yourself in a large corridor ;
there is plenty of light there, for over a hundred lamps are burning there.
"I'ou will then see three doors, which you can open ; the keys are in the
locks. When you get into the first chamber, you will see, in the middle
of the floor, a large chest, on the top of which a dog is sitting ; he has a
pair of eyes as large as tea-cups, but you must not mind that. I will give
you my blue-chequered apron, which you must spread out on the floor,
then go quickly and take the dog, put him on my apron, open the chest,
and take as many pennies as you like. They are all of copper ; but if you
would rather have silver, you must go into the next chamber ; there a dog
is sitting with a pair of eyes as large as mill-wheels, but you must not
mind that; put him on mv apron, and help yourself to the money. If,
however, you want gold, you can have that as well, and as much as you
can carry, if you will go into the third chamber. But the dog that sits
on the money-chest there has eyes as big as the Round Tower.' That 's
the right sort of dog, I can tell you. But you must not trouble yourself
about that. Only put the dog on my apron, and he won't harm you,
and take as much gold as you like from the chest."

"That 's not at all bad," said the soldier. "But what shall I give
you, old witch ? For you are sure to want something, I should say."

"No," said the witch, "not a single penny will I have. You shall
only bring me an old tinder-box, which mv grandmother forgot the last
time she was down there."

"Ah, indeed! Let me get the rope round my waist," said the
soldier.

"Here it is," said the witch, "and here is my blue-chequered apron."

The soldier then climbed up into the tree, let himself plump down
into the hole, and stood now, as the witch had said, in the great corridor
below, where the many hundred lamps were burning.

So he opened the first door. Ugh ! there sat the dog with eyes as
large as tea-cups, staring at him.

"You are a nice fellow," said the soldier. He put the dog on the
witch's apron, and took as many copper pennies as he had room tor
in his pocket; he then closed the chest, put the dog back again, and
went into the second chamber. Ah ! there sat the dog with eyes as big as
mill-wheels.

"You should n't look so hard at me," said the soldier; "it might hurt
your eyes." And so he put the dog on the witch's apron ; but when he

1 A well-known tower in Copenhagen.

IHE SOI.DILR

THE TINDER-BOX 103

saw all the silver money in the chest, he threw away all the copper money
he had, and filled his pocket and his knapsack with silver only.

He then went into the third chamber. But oh, how horrid ! The
dog in there had really eyes as big as the Round Tower, and they went
round in his head like two wheels !

"Gt)od evening!" said the soldier, and touched his cup, for such a
dog he had never seen before; but, after having looked at him for a while,
he thought he had had enough of that, so he lifted the dog down on the
floor and opened the chest. Great heavens ! what a lot of gold ! lie
could buy the whole of Copenhagen, and all the sugar-pigs from the
sweetstuff women out oi' it, as well as all the tin soldiers, whips, and
rocking-horses in the world. Yes, there was plenty of money, sure
enough.

The soldier now threw away all the silver shillings he had filled his
pocket and his knapsack with, and took gold coins instead; all his pockets,
his knapsack, his cap, and his boots were filled, so that he could scarcely
walk. Now he had plenty of money! He put the dog back on the
chest, slammed the door to, and cried up the tree:

"Pull me up, old witch!"

"Have you got the tinder-box with you?" asked the witch.

"Why, no!" said the soldier. "I had forgotten all about it"; and
so he went and fetched it. The witch hoisted him up, and there he
stood again on the high-road, with his pockets, boots, knapsack, and cap
full of money.

"What are you going to do with the tinder-box?" asked the soldier.

"That has nothing to do with you," said the witch; "you have got
your money! Give me the tinder-box!"

"Nonsense!" said the soldier; "just tell me at once what vou are go-
ing to do with it, or I '11 draw my sword and cut your head off!"

"No!" said the witch.

The soldier then cut her head off. There she lav. But he tied up
all his money in her apron, carried it on his back like a bundle, put the
tinder-box in his pocket, and set out straight for the town.

It was a fine town ; he put up at the best inn, ordered the verv best
rooms, and the dishes he was fond of; for now he was rich, since he had
so much money.

The servant who was going to clean his boots thought, of course, they
were funny old boots for such a rich gentleman to wear, for he had not
yet bought himself new ones. The next day, however, he got new boots
and fine clothes; and now the soldier looked like a fine gentleman, and
the people told him all about the grand things in their town, and about
the king, and what a beautiful princess his daughter was.

"Where can one get to see her?" asked the soldier.

"She is not to he seen at all," they all said; "she lives in a big palace

104 THE TINDER-BOX

of copper, with many walls and towers round about it. No one but the
king can go in and out there, because it has been predicted that she will
be married to quite a common soldier, and that the king will not hear ot."

"I should like to see her," thought the soldier; but that, of course,
he would not be permitted to do.

So he began leading a merry lite; he went to the theater, drove in the
king's park, and gave a deal of money to the poor, which was very good
of him. He knew from past experience how terrible it was to be without
a penny.

He was now rich, had fine clothes, and a number of friends who all said
he was a ' jolly fellow,' a real cavalier, and this the soldier liked much to hear.
But as he went on paying out money everyday and received none at all in
return, he was at last left with only two pennies, and was obliged to give
up the pretty rooms he had been living in, and to move to a small, tiny
garret, right under the roof, where he had to brush his own boots and to
mend them with a darning-needle; and none of his friends came to v^ee him,
for there were so many stairs to walk up!

One dark evening he found he was not even able to buy himselt a
candle, when suddenly he remembered that there was a candle-end in the
tinder-box, which he had taken out of the hollow tree into which the
witch had helped him. He brought out the tinder-box and the candle-
end, but as soon as he struck fire and the sparks tlew from the flint, the
door was burst open, and the dog, whom he had seen down under the tree,
and who had eyes as large as tea-cups, stood before him and said: " W hat
are master's orders V

" Hullo! what 'sthis? " said the soldier ; "this is a jolly tinder-box, if I
can get what I want in this way. Bring me some money! " he said to the
dog; and off the dog went; and the next minute he was back again, hold-
ing a large bag full of money in his mouth.

The soldier now knew what a splendid tinder-box it was. It he struck
it once, the dog who was sitting on the chest with the copper money
came; if he struck it twice, the one who had the silver money appeared ;
and if he struck it thrice, the one who had the gold came.

So the soldier moved down into his pretty rooms again, put on his fine
clothes, and then all his friends knew him at once, and appeared to be very
fond of him.

One day he thought to himself: it 's very strange one cannot get a
sight of that princess ! She is so very beautiful, they all say I But what can
be the good of that, when she must always sit inside that great copper
palace with the many towers. Shall I never be able to see her, I wonder.
Where is my tinder-box ? He struck a light, and there stood the dog with
eyes as large as tea-cups!

It 's in the middle of the night, I know," said the soldier, " but I should
like so much to see the princess, only tor a moment ! "

THE SOLDIER COULD SEE THROUGH THE WINDOW HOW THE PEOPLE WERE HURRYING OUT OF THE
TOWN TO SEE HIM HANGED. HE HEARD THE DRUMS GOING AND SAW THE SOLDIERS MARCHING.

THE TINDER-BOX 107

The dog was out of the room in an instant, and before the soldier could
give it a thought, he saw him returning with the princess, who was sitting
on the dog's back asleep. She was so lovely, that any one could see she
was a real princess ; the soldier could not help it, he had to kiss her, for
he was a true soldier.

The dog then ran back again with the princess, but when the morning
came and the king and queen were having their cup of tea, the princess
said she had had such a wonderful dream in the night about a dog and a
soldier. She had ridden upon the dog and the soldier had kissed her.

"That 's a pretty story, I must say !" said the queen.

One of the old court-ladies was then set to watch by the princess's bed-
side next night, to see if it really had been a dream, or what it might be.

The soldier was longing terribly to see the beautiful princess again,
and in the night the dog came for her; he took her on his back and ran
as fast as he could, but the old lady put on spring-heeled boots and ran
behind, keeping up the same pace as they. When she saw them disap-
pear in a big house, she thought to herself: "Now I know where it is,"
and made a big cross on the gate with a piece of chalk. She then went
home, and soon afterward the dog came back with the princess ; but when
he saw that a cross had been put on the gate where the soldier lived, he
took a piece of chalk and make a cross on all the gates all over town ;
this was clever of him, for now the court-ladv could not find the right
ijate, since there were crosses on all ot them.

Early next morning the king and the queen, the old court-ladv and all
the officers went to see where the princess had been to.

"There it is!" said the king, when he saw the first gate with a cross
on it.

"No, my dear, there it is!" said the queen, who saw another gate
with a cross.

"But here is one, and there is one!" said all of them ; wherever they
looked there were crosses on the gates. So they knew it would be of no
use to go on searching any farther.

But the queen was a very clever woman, who could do something
more than ride in a carriage. She took her large pair of gold scissors,
cut out a large piece of silk and made a nice little bag, which she filled
with small fine buckwheat groats. This she tied to the princess's back,
and when this was done, she cut a little hole in the bag, so that the groats
should run out along the ground the whole of the way the princess went.

In the night the dog came again; he took the princess on his back
and ran with her to the soldier, who was so deeply in love with her, and
who wished so much he had been a prince, that he might make her his
wife.

The dog did not notice that the groats were running out of the hag
all the way from the palace right up to the soldier's window, where he

108

THE TINDER-BOX

climbed up along the wall with the princess. In the morning the king
and the queen could easily see where their daughter had been, and so
they took the soldier and put him in prison.

There he sat. Ugh, how dark and miserable it was ! And the people
said to him: "To-morrow vou will be hanged." That was not pleasant
to hear, and he had forgotten his tinder-box at home in the inn. Next

THE THREE DOCS DANCED IN FRONT OF

JARKIAGE AND CRIED '-HURRAH!

morning he could see through the iron bars in the little window how the
people were hurrying out of the town to see him hanged. He heard the
drums going and saw the soldiers marching. All the inhabitants were
running about; amongst them was a shoemaker's boy with a leather apron
and with slippers on his feet ; he galloped past at such a rate, that one
of his slippers flew oft' right against the wall, where the soldier sat peering
out throuijh the iron bars.

THE TINDER-BOX

109

"Hey, you shoemaker's boy! You need not be in such a hurry,"
said the soldier to him, "there '11 be nothing going on till I come! But
won't you run across to where I have been living and fetch my tinder-
box, and I '11 give you twopence.^ But you '11 have to use your legs!"
The shoemaker's boy was glad to earn the twopence, and rushed oft' to
tetch the tinder-box; he gave it to the soldier, and — well, now you shall
hear all about it.

Outside the city a great gallows had been erected, and round abt)ut
stood the soldiers and many hundred thousand people. The king and the
queen sat in a gorgeous throne right opposite the judge and the whole
court.

The soldier was already standing at the top of the ladder, but as they
were going to place the halter round his neck, he said that they always
allowed a poor sinner to have an innocent wish granted before he sufi^ered
his punishment. He would so like to smoke a pipe of tobacco; it would
be the last pipe he would get in this world.

The king would not say no to that, and so the soldier took the tinder-
box and struck a light, once, twice, thrice ! and there stt)od all the dogs,
the one with eyes as large as tea-cups, the one with eyes like mill-wheels,
and the one who had eyes as large as the Round Tower.

"Now help me, so that I sha'n't be hanged!" said the soldier, and
then the dogs rushed at the judges and the whole court, seized one by the
legs and one by the nose, and threw them many fithoms up in the air, so
that they fell down and were dashed to pieces.

"I will not!" said the king, but the biggest dog seized both him and
the queen and threw them after all the others. Then all the soldiers grew
frightened, and all the people shouted : " Little soldier, you shall be our
king and marry the beautiful princess! '

So they placed the soldier in the king's carriage, and the three dogs
danced in front of it and cried "hurrah! " and the boys whistled through
their fingers, while the soldiers presented arms. The princess left the
copper palace and became queen, which she liked very much. The
wedding lasted eight days, and the dogs sat at the table and looked on in
astonishment with their big eyes.

LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

MV POOR FLOWERS ARE yUITE DEAD ! " SAID 1,11 ILK IDA.

LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

" Thev were so
are hanging down
asked the student,
could tell the most
\'ith
that

MY poor flowers are quite dead!" said little Id;
beautiful last night, and now all the leaves
quite faded! Why are they doing that?" she
who sat on the sofa. She was very fond of him ; he
beautiful stories and cut out the funniest pictures, such as heart;
little damsels who danced, and rit)wers, and large castles with doo
could be opened; he was indeed a merry student!

"Why do the flowers, look so poorly to-day P" she asked again, and
showed him a whole bouquet which was entirely faded.

"Don't you know what 's the matter with them?" said the student.
" The flowers were at a hall last night, and that 's why they hang their
heads ! "

"But flowers cannot dance!" said little Ida.

"Oh, yes," said the student, "when it is dark and we are asleep, they
run about quite merrily; almost every night they hold a ball!"

"Can't children go to those balls?"

"Yes," said the student, "as tiny daisies and lilies of the valley."

"Where do the prettiest flowers dance?" asked little Ida.

" Have n't you often been outside the gate of the great palace, where
the king lives in summer, and where there is a beautiful garden with many
flowers? You have seen the swans, which swim toward you when you
want to give them bread crumbs. They hold real balls out there, I can
tell you! "

"I was there in the garden yesterday with my mother," said Ida;
"but all the leaves had fallen off the trees, and there were no flowers at

ill! Wht

they? Last summer I saw so many!"

"Thev are in the palace," said the student. "You must know that
as soon as ever the king and all the court move into the town, the flowers
at once run away from the garden up to the palace and make merry. "\ ou
ought to see that! Two most beautiful roses take a seat on the throne,
and then they are king and queen. All the red cockscombs range them-
selves by their side and stand bowing; they are the chamberlains. Then
all sorts of lovely flowers arrive and then they have a great ball; the blue

113

114 LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

violets represent little midshipmen, and dance with hyacinths and crocuses
whom they call young ladies. The tulips and the large tiger-lilies are the
old ladies; they see that the dancing is done well and that everything is
properly conducted ! "

"But," asked little Ida, "does n't any one do anything to the Howers
for dancing in the king's palace?"

"There is no one who really knows anything about that," said the
student. "Sometimes the old keeper who looks after the palace out there,
comes round at night, but he has a large bunch of keys, and as soon as the
riowers hear the keys rattle, they are quite quiet and hide themselves
behind the long curtains and peep out.

" ' I can smell that there are some flowers in here ! ' says the old keeper,
hut he cannot see them."

"That 's great fun," said little Ida, clapping her hands. "But
should n't I be able to see the flowers either?"

"Yes," said the student, "just remember when you go there again to
peep in through the window, and you are sure to see them. I did so to-
day, and there lay a long yellow daffodil on the sofa, stretching herself
and imagining herself to be one of the ladies of the court!"

"Can the flowers in the Botanical Gardens also go there? Can they go
such a long way ?"

"Yes, of course!" said the student, "for they can flv if they like.
Have n't you seen the beautiful butterflies, red, yellow, and white; they
almost look like flowers, and that is what they once were. They have
flown from the stalks right up into the air, flapping with their leaves as
if they were little wings. And as they behaved well, they were allowed
to fly about in the daytime also, and were not obliged to remain at
home and sit still on the stalk, and so the leaves became real wings at
last. You have seen that yourself! It may be, however, that the flowers
in the Botanical Gardens have never been to the king's palace, and do
not know that they have such a merry time at night out there. I
will therefore tell you something which will greatly surprise the botan-
ical professor, who lives next door — you know him, don't you ? When
you go into his garden, you must tell one of the flowers that there is
going to be a great ball at the palace, and he again will tell it to all the
others, and then they will all fly off. When the professor comes into the
garden there will not be a single flower left, and he will not be able to
make out what has become of them."

"But how can the flower tell it to the others? The flowers cannot
talk!"

"That 's true!" answered the student, "but they make signs to one
another. Have n't you seen when the wind blows a little that the
flowers nod to one another and move all their green leaves ? They under-
stand it as plainly as if they spoke!"

LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS 115

"Can the professor understand their language?" asked Ida.

"Yes, of course ! He came down into his garden one morning and
saw a big nettle making signs with its leaves to a beautiful red carnation ;
it said, 'You are so lovely, and I am so fond of you.' The professor does
not like such goings on, so he gave the nettle a slap across its leaves, tor
they are its iingers, you know ; but he stung himself, and since then he
never dares to touch a nettle."

"How funny! " said little Ida with a laugh.

"What ideas to put into the child's head!" remarked the tiresome
counselor, who had come on a visit and was sitting on the sofa. He did
not like the student and was always grumbling when he saw him cutting
out the funny, comic pictures, sometimes a man hanging on a gallows and
holding a heart in his hand, for he had been a destroyer of hearts, some-
times an old witch riding on a broom and carrying her husband on her
nose. The counselor did not like that, and so he would say as he had
dt)ne just now: "What ideas to put into the child's head! It is pure
imagination ! "

But it seemed to little Ida that what the student had told her about
her iiowers was very amusing, and she thought a great deal about it. The
flowers hung their heads, because they were tired of dancing all the night;
they must be poorly. So she carried them with her to a nice little table
where she kept all her toys and the whole drawer was full of pretty things.
In the doll's bed lay her doll Sophia, asleep, but little Ida said to her:
"You must really get up, Sophia, and be content with lying in the drawer
to-night; the poor flowers are poorly and they must lie in your bed; per-
haps they will then get well again ! " And so she took the doll, who looked
very cross but did not say a single word, because she was angry at not being
allowed to keep her bed.

Ida put the flowers in the doll's bed, pulled the little quilt over them,
and said they must lie quiet and she would make tea for them, so that they
might get well again and be able to get up in the morning. She then
drew the curtains closely round the little bed, so that the sun should not
shine in their eyes.

The whole evening she could not help thinking about what the student
had told her, and when she had to go to bed herself, she felt she must first
go behind the curtains which hung before the windows, where her mother's
lovely flowers were standing, both hyacinths and tulips, and then she whis-
pered quite softly, "I know you are going to a ball to-night! " but the
flowers appeared as if they understood nothing and did not move a leat,
but little Ida knew — what she knew.

When she had got into bed she lav for a long time thinking how nice
it would be to see the beautiful flowers dance at the king's palace.

"I wonder if my flowers really have been there.?" And so she fell
asleep. In the course of the night she awoke ; she had been dreaming about

116 LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

the flowers and the student, whom the counselor used to scold for putting
silly ideas into her head. It was quite quiet in the bedroom where Ida was
lying; the night-lamp was burning on the table and her father and mother
were asleep.

"I wonder if my flowers are now lying in Sophia's bed," she said to
herself, "how I should like to know!" She raised herself a little and
looked toward the door, which was half open ; in there lay the flowers and
all her toys. She listened, and it appeared to her as if she heard some
one playing the piano in the next room, very softly, and more beautifully
than she had ever heard it before.

"I expect all my flowers are now dancing in there ! " she said, "how
I should like to see them! " But she dared not get up for fear of waking
her father and mother. "If they would only come in here," she said; but
the flowers did not come, and the music continued to play so beautifully
that she could not resist it any longer, — it was too entrancing, — so she
crept out of her little bed and went quite softly to the door and looked
into the room. Oh, what an amusing scene met her sight !

There was no night-lamp in there, but still it was quite light ; the
moon was shining through the window right into the middle of the room !
It was almost as light as day. All the hyacinths and tulips were standing
in two long rows along the floor; there were none at all in the window,
where only empty pots were to be seen. Down on the floor the flowers
were dancing most gracefullv round and round, doing the chain quite cor-
rectly and holding each other by their long green leaves as they swung
round. And over at the piano sat a large yellow lily whom little Ida was
sure she had seen last summer, for she remembered so well that the student
had said: " How she is like Miss Lina ! " but they all laughed at him then.
But now Ida really thought that the long yellow flower was like Miss
Lina, and had just the same manners when playing, putting her large yel-
low head first on one side and then on the other, and nodding it to keep
time with the music. No one noticed little Ida. She then saw a large
blue crocus jump right onto the middle of the table, where the toys were
standing, and walk straight up to the doll's bed and pull aside the curtains;
there lay the sick flowers, but they got up directly and nodded their heads
to the others to show that they also wanted to join in the dance. The old
incense-burner with the broken under-lip stood up and bowed to the pretty
flowers; they did not appear at all ill, they jumped down among the others
and looked so pleased.

Just then it seemed as if something fell down from the table. Ida
looked that way; it was the Shrove-tide rod,' which had jumped down; it
thought it also belonged to the flowers. It was really very pretty ; at the
top sat a little wax doll, which had just the same kind of broad hat on her

J The Shrove-tidc rod is generally a three-branched flower-decoration, made of paper,
about twelve to eighteen inches in height.

DOWN 0-\ IHt; KLDUk IHK bLlAVERS WERE IJAN'CING MOST GRACKBULLV ROUND AND ROUND,
HOLDING EACH OTHER BY THEIR LONG, GREEN LEAVES.

LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

119

head as the counselor wore; the Shrove-tide rod and its three red wooden
legs jumped right into the midst of the flowers and stamped quite loudly ;
it was dancing the mazurka, and this tlie other flowers could not dance
because they were too light and could not stamp.

All at once the wax doll on the rod began to grow bigger and bigger,
whirled round above the paper flowers, and called out quite loudly: "What
ideas to put into the child's head ! It is pure imagination !" And then the
wax doll looked exactly like the counselor with the broad hat, and was
just as yellow and cross as he, but the paper flowers struck him across his

THE FLOWERS LED SOPHI
SOME

.)F THEM KORMIN(

THE FLOOR A^
IRCLE ROUND H

thin legs; and he shrank and shrank till he became a little wee bit of a wax
doll again. He looked so very tunny, little Ida could not help laughing!
The Shrove-tide rod went on dancing and the counselor had to dance as
well ; there was no help for it, he had to dance whether he made himself
big and long, or became the little yellow wax doll with the big black hat
Then the other flowers interceded for him, especially those that had been
in the doll's bed, and at last the Shrove-tide rod stopped dancing.

At that moment there was a loud knocking in the drawer where Ida's
doll Sophia lay among the other toys; the incense-burner ran to the edge
of the table, laid himself flat down upon his stomach and managed to get

120 LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

the drawer pulled out a little; whereupon Sophia sat up and looked quite
surprised.

"There 's a ball here!" she said; "why has n't any one told me?"

"Will you dance with me?" asked the incense-burner.

"You are a nice one to dance with, I 'm sure!" she said, and turned
her back upon him. So she sat down on the drawer and thought that
one of the flowers would be sure to come and engage her, but no one
came; then she coughed, hem! hem! hem! but no one came for all that.
The incense-burner danced all by himself, and he did n't do it at all
badly !

As none of the flowers seemed to notice Sophia, she let herself fall
with a thump from the drawer right down on the floor, and caused quite
a commotion ; all the flowers came running round her asking if she had
hurt herself, and they were all so nice to her, especially the flowers that
had been lying in her bed. But she had not hurt herself at all, and all
Ida's flowers thanked her for her beautiful bed, and said they loved her
very much; they led her into the middle of the floor, where the moon
was shining, and danced with her, while the other flowers formed a circle
round them. Sophia was now very pleased and said they might keep her
bed; she did not at all mind lying in the drawer.

But the flowers said: "We are very much obliged to you, but we
cannot live very long! To-morrow we shall be quite dead, but tell little
Ida she must bury us in the garden where the canary bird is lying ; then
we shall grow up again in the summer and be prettier than ever!"

" No, you must not die!" said Sophia, and then she kissed the flowers.

Just then the door of the next room flew open, and a lot of beautiful
flowers came dancing in. Ida could not make out where they came
from ; they must be all the flowers from the king's palace. First of all
came two lovely roses, with their little golden crowns; they were the
king and the queen. Then came the most beautiful stocks and carna-
tions, bowing on all sides; they had brought music with them. Large
poppies and peonies were blowing pea-shells till they were quite red in
the face. The blue-bells and the little white snowdrops tinkled as if they
had bells on. The music was very funny! Then there came many
other flowers, and they all danced; the blue violets and the red hearts-
eases, the daisies and the lilies of the valley. And all the flowers kissed
one another; it was such a pretty sight!

At last the flowers said good night to each other and little Ida stole
back to her bed, where she dreamed of all that she had seen.

When she got up next morning, she went at once to the little table to
see if the flowers were still there. She pulled aside the curtains of the
little bed, and there they all lay, but thev were quite faded, more so than
they were the day before. Sophia lay in the drawer, where she had put
her; she looked very sleepy.

LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS

121

"Can you remember what you were to tell me?" said little Ida, hut
Sophia looked very stupid and did not say a single word.

"You are not at all kind," said Ida, "and yet they all danced with
vou." So she took a little cardboard box, on which were painted beau-
tiful birds; she opened it and put the dead flowers into it.

"That will make a pretty coffin tor vou!" she said, "and when my
Norwegian cousins come here, they shall help me to bury you in the
garden, so that you can grow up next summer and be prettier than ever ! "

Her Norwegian cousins were two tine boys, whose names were Jonas
and Adolph; their father had given them each a new cross-bow, and they
had brought these with them to show Ida. She told them about the poor
flowers that were dead, and they were allowed to bury them. Both the
boys went first with their cross-bows on their shoulders, and little Ida fol-
lowed behind with the dead flowers in the beautiful box. A little grave
was dug in the garden. Ida first kissed the flowers and then laid them in
the box in the grave, while Adolph and fonas shot with their cross-bows
over it, tor thev had neither guns nor cannons.

ELDER -TREE MOTHER

■^

THt FLOWERS OF THE ELDER-FREE SMELLED SO SWEETLY.

ELDER-TREE MOTHER

THERE was once a little hoy who had caught a cold through get-
ting his feet wet. No one could make out how he had managed
to get them wet, for the weather was quite fine. His mother
undressed him and put him to bed, and had the tea-urn brought in to
make a nice cup of elder-tea for him, for that warms the body so well !
Just then the amusing old gentleman, who lived at the top of the house,
came in through the door; he lived by himself, for he had neither wife
nor children, but he was so very fond of children and could tell so many
fairy tales and stories that it was a pleasure to listen to him.

"You must drink vour tea, now," said the mother to the little hoy,
"and then perhaps vou shall hear a fairy tale!"

"If one could only think of something new!" said the old man with
a friendly nod. "But how did the little fellow get his feet wet?" he
asked.

"Yes, where did he get them wet?" said the mother. "No one can
make it out."

"Will you tell me a story?" asked the boy.

"Yes, if you can tell me exactly how deep the gutter is in the little
street where your school is. I must know that first."

125

126

ELDER-TREE MOTHER

"Just half way up to my knee," said the boy, "but then I have to
stand in the deepest part! "

"Ah, that 's where we have got our wet feet!" said the old man; "I
ought now to tell you a fairy tale, but I don't know any more!"

"But you can make up one," said the little boy. "Mt)ther says that
you can make a story out of everything you look at or touch!"

" Yes, but those tales and stories are no good ; no, the real ones come
of themselves — they knock at my forehead and say, 'Here I am!'"

THE LID GRADUALLY

IFTED ITSELF AND LARdE BRANCHES OF THE ELDER-TREE SHOT
H FROM THE URN, EVEN THROUGH THE SPOUT.

"Will one knock there soon?" asked the little hoy, and his mother
laughed, put the elder-tea into the urn and poured boiling water over it.

"Do tell me a fairy tale, do!"

"Yes, if only it would come of itself, but the real fairy tale only
comes when it is in the right humor and likes to come — But stop!"
he suddenly exclaimed. "There 's one! Mind! There's one now in
the tea-urn ! "

The little boy looked at the tea-urn ; the lid gradually lifted itself and
large branches of the elder-tree with fresh white elder flowers shot forth
from the urn, even through the spout, and spread themselves out on all

ELDER-TREE MOTHER

127

sides, always growing larger and larger, till they formed the most beau-
tiful elder-tree — in fact, a great tree, which extended right to the little
boy's bed and pushed the curtains aside. How it blossomed, and how
fragrant it was ! In the middle of the tree sat a pleasant-looking old
woman in a strange dress; it was quite green, just like the leaves of the
elder-tree, and was trimmed with large white elder flowers; one could
not see at once whether it was made of cloth or of living green plants and
flowers.

"What is the name
of the old lady?" asked
the little boy.

"Well, the Romans
and the Greeks called her
a dryad," said the old
man, "but we do not un-
derstand the meaning of
that name. In Nyboder
they have a better name
for her ; there she is called
' Elder-Tree Mother,' and
it is to her you must now
give all your attention.
Listen, and look at the
beautiful elder-tree !

" Just such a large tree
stands in full bloom out
at Nyboder! It grew
there in the corner of the
yard of a poor little cot-
tage; under this tree one
atternoon, in the most de-
lightful sunshine, sat two
old people. They were
an old, old sailor and his
old, old wife; they were
great - grandparents and
were soon to celebrate their golden wedding, but they could not quite
remember the date. Elder-tree mother sat in the tree and looked so
pleased, just as she does now. 'I know when the golden wedding is!'
she said, but they did not hear it; they were talking about the old days.

" ' Yes, do you remember,' said the old sailor, ' when we were quite
youngsters and used to run about and play together.? It was in this very
yard where we are now sitting! We put twigs into the ground and made
a garden.'

UNDER THE TREE SAT AN OLD SAILOR AND HIS OLD

WIFE. ELDER-TREE MOTHER SAT IN THE

TREE AND LOOKED SO PLEASED.

128

ELDER-TREE MOTHER

"'Yes,' said the old woman, 'I remember it well! We watered the
twigs, and one of them was from an elder-tree, and it took root, shot
forth green shoots, and has now become the great tree under which we
old people are sitting.'

" ' Yes, of course ! ' said he, ' and over in the corner stood the water-
butt, in which I used to sail my ship, which I had made myself. How
it did sail! But I soon came to sail in quite a different style!'

"'Yes, but tirst we went to school and learned something!' she said.
'And then we were confirmed; we both cried, I remember. But in the

afternoon we
went hand and
hand up the
Round Tower,
and looked out
upon the world
over Copenha-
gen and the
Sound; then we
went to Freder-
iksberg, where
the king and
queen sailed
about in the
canals in their
beautiful boats.'
"'But I soon
came to sail
about in quite
a different style,
and for many
years, far away
on long voy-
ages ! '
" ' "^'es, I often wept for you ! ' she said ; ' I thought you were dead and
gone and lying rolling about at the bottom of the sea! Many a night
have I got up to look at the weather-cock to see if the wind had shifted ;
it had shifted, of course, but you did not come. I remember so clearly
how the rain was pouring down one day, when the dustman came out-
side the house where I was in service, and I came down with the dustbin, and
was standing by the door. What terrible weather it was! Just as I was
standing there, the postman came up and gave me a letter ! It was from you.
How it had traveled about! I snatched it and read it ! I laughed and I cried !
I was so happy! You wrote that you were in the hot countries, where the
coffee grows ! How delightful it must have been there! You told me

'JUST AS I WAS STANDING THERE READING YOUR LETTER, SOME ONE
PUT HIS ARM ROUND MY WAIST — "

ELDER-TREE MOTHER 129

so much and I could see it all before me, while the rain was pouring
down and I was standing there with the dust-bin. fust then some one
put his arm round my waist '

'"^'es, and you gave him such a box on the ear, that it sent him
tlying!'

"'Well, I did n't know it was you! You had arrived as early as your
letter; and you looked so handsome, — ot course, you are so still, — you
had a long, yellow-silk handkerchief in your breast-pocket and a black,
glazed hat! You were so grand! But, gracious me, what terrible weather
it was, and what a state the streets were in ! '

"'Then we got married!' he said; 'do you remember? And then
our first little boy came, and then Marie, and Nils, and Peter, and Hans
Christian ! '

"'Yes, and all of them have now grown up and become respectable
people, whom everybody likes! '

" ' And then their children again ; and they have little ones too ! ' said
the old sailor. ' Yes, they are great-grandchildren, and chips of the
old block ! Hut it seems to me it was about this time of the year we
were married ! '

"'Yes, this is the day of your golden wedding!' said elder-tree mother,
as she put her head straight in between the two old people, and they
thought it was the neighbor's wife who nodded to them ; and they looked
at one another and took each other by the hand. Soon after came their
children and grandchildren, who all knew it was the golden-wedding day;
they had already been there in the morning to offer their congratulations,
but the old people had forgotten that, although they remembered so well
everything that had happened many years ago. The elder-tree smelled so
sweetly and the sun, which was setting, shone right into the faces of the
old people, which were quite fresh and ruddy, and the youngest of the
grandchildren danced around them and shouted gleefully that to-night
there would be great doings — that they were going to have hot potatoes!
And elder-tree mother in the tree nodded her head and shouted
'hurrah ! ' with all the others."

"But that is not a fairy tale!" said the little boy, who had been listen-
ing to it.

"Well, you ought to know!" said the old man, who had been telling
the storv ; "but let us ask elder-tree mother!"

"That was not a fairy tale!" said elder-tree mother, "but now it is
coming ! Out of real lite grow the most wonderful fairy tales ; other-
wise my beautiful elder-tree could not have sprung from the tea-urn." And
then she took the little boy out of bed and held him to her bosom, and
the elder-tree branches, which were full of blossoms, closed around them,
till at last they seemed to sit in an arbor, thickly covered with leaves and
flowers — and away it flew with them through the air. What a delightful

130

ELDER-TREE MOTHER

trip ! Elder-tree mother had suddenly become a beautiful young girl,
but her frock was of the same green stuff and was trimmed with the same
white flowers which elder-tree mother had worn ; in her bosom she had
a real elder flower and round her yellow, curly hair a whole wreath of
elder flowers; her eyes were large and blue — it was a pleasure to look at
her ! She and the boy kissed each other ; they were of the same age and
felt the same happiness. They went hand in hand out of the arbor, and
were now standing in the beautiful flower garden of their home. On the

THE ELDER-TREE BRANCHES CLOSED AROUND THEM TILL THEY SEEMED TO SIT IN AN
ARBOR, AND AWAY IT FLEW WITH THEM THROUGH THE AIR.

fresh lawn the fither's stick was tethered to a peg; to the little ones there
was life in that stick ; as soon as they set themselves astride it, the bright
knob turned into a horse's head with a long, black, flowing manej and
four strong legs shot out from the stick. The animal was powerful and
high-spirited, and they flew at full gallop round the lawn — hurrah! —
"Now we '11 ride many miles away," said the boy; "we'll ride to the old
manor-house, where we were last year!" And they rode round and round
the lawn, while the little girl, who, as we know, was no one else but
elder-tree mother, kept crying out: "Now we are in the country! Do
you see the farmer's house with the big baking-oven sticking out like a

ELDER-TREE MOTHER 131

giant egg in the wall facing the road ? The elder-tree spreads its branches
over it, and the cock struts about and scratches the ground for the hens ;
look how proudly he holds himself! Now we are near the church. It
lies high up on the hill behind the great oak-trees, one of which is half
dead ! Now we are near the smithy where the fire burns in the forge
and half-naked men strike the red-hot iron with their hammer, so that
the sparks fly all over the place. Away, away to the old manor-house!"

And everything which the little girl, who sat behind him on the stick,
spoke of, flew rapidly past them, and the boy saw it all, although they
were only galloping round the lawn. Then they played on a sidewalk
and marked the outline of a little garden in the ground, and she took the
elder flower out of her hair and planted it there; it grew up exactly like
the one which the old couple had planted in Nyboder, when they were
young, which has already been told. They went hand in hand just like
the old people had done as children, but they did not go up the Round
Tower or to Frederiksburg Garden ; no, the little girl took the boy round
the waist and flew with him all over Denmark. It was spring, and the
summer came, and it was autumn, and the winter came, and thousands of
pictures were reflected on the boy's eyes and heart, while the little girl
sang to him : " This you will never forget ! " And during their whole
flight the elder-tree smelled sweet and delicious; he noticed, of course,
the smell of the roses and the fresh beeches, but the fragrance from the
elder-tree became still sweeter, for its flowers hung near the little girl's
heart, and he often leaned his head on it during their flight.

"How beautiful it is here in the spring!", said the little girl, as they
stood in the beechwood where all the shoots were fresh and green, and
where the fragrant green woodruff lay at their feet, and the pale-pink
anemones looked so beautiful among the green. "Oh, that there might
always be spring in the fragrant Danish beechwoods ! "

"How beautiful it is here in the summer!" she said, as they flew past
the old manor house of the middle ages, the red walls and pointed gables
of which were reflected in the moats where swans were swimming about
and looking up the old shady avenue. In the fields the corn stood waving
like a sea, the ditches were full of red and yellow flowers, and the hedges
with wild hops and budding convolvuluses, and in the evening the moon
rose, large and round, while the scent from the hayricks in the meadows
filled the air with sweetness. "It can never be forgotten!"

" How beautiful it is here in the autumn ! " said the little girl, as the
heavens became loftier and of a darker blue; the forests glowed with the
most beautiful colors in red, yellow, and green ; the hounds rushed past
while whole flocks of wild birds flew screeching over the burial mounds,
where the blackberry bushes hung over the old stones. The sea was blue-
black, dotted with white sails, and in the barn sat old women, girls, and
children picking hops into a big tub; the young folks sang ditties and the

132 ELDER-TREE MOTHER

old ones told fairy tales about brownies and trolls. "It could not be
better!"

"How beautiful it is here in the winter!" said the little girl as all the
trees stood covered with hoar frost, looking like white corals. The snow
creaked under foot as if all the people were wearing new boots, and from
the sky fell one shooting star after another. In the parlor the Christ-
mas tree was lighted; there were presents, and all were in good spirits.
In the country the violin was heard in the peasant's parlor ; and there
were scrambles for slices of apples. Even the poorest child said : " It is
beautiful in winter-time!"

Yes, it was delightful ! The little girl showed the boy everything,
while the elder-tree filled the air with scent, and the red flag with the
white cross was waving, the tlag under which the old sailor in Nvboder
had sailed! And the boy grew up and was going out into the wide world,
far away to the hot countries where the coffee grows ; but when they
parted the little girl took an elder flower from her breast and gave it to
him to keep. It was placed in his hymn-book, and whenever he opened
the book in foreign lands, it always opened at the place where the flower
lay, and the more he looked at it the fresher it grew ; he seemed to breathe
the air of the Danish woods, and between the leaves of the flowers he
could plainly see the little girl peeping out with her clear blue eyes, and
then she whispered: "How beautiful it is here in spring, in summer, in
autumn, and in winter," while a hundred pictures passed before him.

Thus many vears had passed and he was now an old man and sat with
his wife under the blossoming tree; they held each other by the hand,
just as great-grandfather and great-grandmother had done out at Nyboder,
and like them, talked about the old days and of the golden wedding; the
little girl with the blue eyes and the elder flowers in her hair was sitting
up in the tree, nodding to them both, and saying: "To-day it is the golden
wedding-day!" And then she took two flowers from his wreath and kissed
them ; they shone first like silver, and then like gold, and when she placed
them on the heads of the old couple, each flower became a golden crown.
There they both sat, like a king and queen, under the fragrant tree, which
looked exactly like an elder-tree; and he told his old wife the story about
elder-tree mother, just as it had been told him, when he was a little bov,
and they both thought there was so much in it, which resembled their
own and these parts they liked best.

"Yes, that 's how it is!" said the little girl in the tree. "Some call
me elder-tree mother, others call me a dryad, but my proper name is
'Memory'; it is I who sit in the tree which goes on growing and grow-
ing. I can remember; I can relate. Let me see if you still have your
flower ! ' '

And the old man opened his hymn-book and there lav the elder flower
as fresh as if it had just been put there, and Memory nodded, and the two

ELDER-TREE MOTHER TOOK TWO FLOWERS FROM HER WREATH AND PLACED THEM ON THE HEADS
OF THE OLD COUPLE, WHEN EACH FLOWER BECAME A GOLDEN CROWN.

ELDER-TREE MOTHER

135

old people with their golden crowns sat in the red glow of the setting sun ;
they closed their eyes, and — and then the story came to an end!

The little hoy lay in his bed; he did not know whether he had been
dreaming, or whether he had been listening to the story. The tea-urn
stood on the table, but no elder-tree was growing out of it, and the old
man, who had been telling the story, was just on the point of going out
at the door, which he did.

"How beautiful it was! " said the little boy. "Mother, I have been
to the hot countries!"

"Yes, I can quite believe that!" said the mother; "when one has
drunk two brimful cups of elder-tea, one may well think one has been to
the hot countries!" And she covered him up well, so that he should not
take cold. "You must have slept while I sat disputing with him whether
it was a story or a fairy tale!"

"And where is elder-tree mother?" asked the boy.

"She is in the tea-urn," said the mother, "and there she had better
stay! "

THE BROWNIE AT THE
BUTTERMAN'S

[HE BRt.nVNli-, l.i\Kh I.
GROUND FLOOR.

THE BROWNIE AT THE BUTTERMAN'S

HK was a student of the good old sort; he lived in the garret and
possessed nothing. The butterman, who was also one of the good
old sort, lived on the ground floor and owned the whole house.
The brownie stuck to him, for he always got a dish of porridge every
Christmas eve with a big lump of butter in the middle. The butterman
could well aflbrd this, so the brownie settled down in the shop, where
there was much to learn.

One evening the student came in through the hack door to buy some
candles and cheese; he had no one to send, so he went himself. He got
what he asked for and paid for it, and the butterman and his wife nodded
"good night" to him^ — she, by the by, could do more than nod to
people, for she was gifted with a glib tongue — and the student nodded in
return, but stopped to read the piece of paper in which the cheese was

«* 139

140 THE BROWNIE AT THE BUTTERMAN'S

wrapped. It was a leaf torn out of an old book, which ought not to have
been torn to pieces; it was an old book full of poetry.

"There is more of it over there!" said the butterman. "I gave an
old woman some coffee-beans for it; if you'll give me fourpence you can
have what there is left of it."

"Thanks!" said the student, "let me have it instead of the cheese! I
can eat my bread and butter without anything to it; it would be a sin to
let the whole of the book be torn into bits and pieces. You are an excel-
lent man, a practical man, but poetry you don't understand, any more than
the tub yonder."

This was rather rude of him to sav, especially as far as the tub was con-
cerned, but the butterman and the student both laughed, for it was only
said in fun, of course. But the brownie was annoyed that any one should
dare to say such things to a butterman, who had a house oi' his own, and
sold the best butter.

As soon as it was night and the shop was closed, and all, with the ex-
ception of the student, had gone to bed, the brownie went into the bed-
room and took the wife's tongue — ^she had no use for it when she was
asleep — and whatever object in the room he put it on, received voice and
speech, and could express its thoughts and feelings just as well as the mis-
tress of the house. But only one object at a time could make use of it,
which was a blessing, for otherwise they would all have been speaking at
once.

And the brownie put the woman's tongue on the tub, in which the i>ld
newspapers were kept. "Is it really true," asked the brownie, "that you
don't know what poetry is.-'"

"Of course I do," said the tub. "It is what you find at the bottom of
the pages in newspapers and cut out. I should say I have more of it inside
of me than the student, and I am only a simple tub compared with the
butterman. "

And the brownie put the tongue on the coffee-quern; how it rattled
away! And he put it on the butter-rtrkiii aiul the money-drawer — all
were of the same opinion as the tub, and wliat all are agreed about one
must respect.

"I '11 just pay out that student!" said the brownie, as he went quietly
up the kitchen stairs to the garret, where the student lived. He had a
light burning, and the brownie peeped through the keyhole and saw "that
the student was reading in the ragged book from the shop down-stairs.
But how light it was in there! Out of the book shot forth a clear ray of
light, which grew into a trunk — into a mighty tree, which rose high in
the air and spread its branches out over the student. Kvery leaf was tresh
and every flower was a beautiful girl's head, some with dark, sparkling
eyes, others with clear blue eyes. Each fruit was a shining star ami then
there was such a wonderfully lovely sound of song and music.

THE BROWNIE AT THE BUTTERMAN'S 141

Such splendor the Httle brownie had never dreamed of, much less
seen or experienced. And so he remained standing on tip-toe, peeping
and peering through the keyhole till the light was put out. The student
had, no doubt, blown out his candle and gone to bed; but the little
brownie stood there nevertheless, tor he could still hear the beautiful soft
melody, a delightful cradle-song ior the student, who had lain down to rest.

THERE THE UTTLE V,\i
HOLDING IN HI

WNIE SAT, ILLUMINATED I'.Y THE
HANDS HIS RED CAP IN WHICH

lURNINi; HOUSE OPPOSITE,
HE TREASURE LAY.

"It is really wonderful here!" said the little brownie. "I never
should have thought it — I think I will stop with the student!" And he
began to think it over, and reasoned quite sensibly with himself, and then
he sighed: " But the student has no porridge!" and so he went away. He
went down to the butterman's shop again, and it was a good thing he did,
for the tub had quite exhausted the mistress's tongue, by discussing all it
contained from one point of view and was just about to turn round to
repeat it from another, when the brownie came to take back the tongue
to its owner. But the whole of the shop, from the money-drawer to the
firewood, had from that time the same opinion as the tub, and they re-
spected it to such an extent and had such confidence in it, that when the

142 THE BROWNIE AT THE BUTTERMAN'S

butterman afterward read about "Art" and "The Drama" in his evening
paper, they all believed it came from the tub.

But the little brownie could not sit quiet and listen any longer to all
the wisdom and arguing down in the shop. As soon as the light shone
out from the garret, he felt as if the rays were strong ropes which drew
him up there; and he had to go and peep through the keyhole, and then
a feeling of vastness came over him, such as we experience at the sight of
the rolling ocean when the storm sweeps over it, and he burst into tears.
He did not know why he cried, but he found some comfort in these tears.
How wonderfully delightful it must be to sit with the student under that
tree, but it could not be — he would have to be content with the key-
hole. There he was standing on the cold landing, while the autumn
wind blew down through the trap-door in the loft above him. It was so
cold, so very cold ; but the little brownie only felt it when the light in the
garret was put out, and when the tones of the music died away. Ugh !
How he shivered ! He then crept down again to his snug little corner
where it was so pleasant and comfortable ! And when the Christmas
porridge came with a big lump of butter in the middle — ah, then the
butterman's was the best place after all.

But in the middle of the night the brownie was awakened by a terrililc
noise against the shutters, caused by the people outside knocking and
thundering away at them, while the watchmen were blowing their
whistles. A big fire had broken out, and the whole street was enveloped
in flames. Was the fire in this house, or in the neighbor's? Where?
It was a terrible moment! The butterman's wife was so bewildered that
she took her gold earrings out of her ears and put them in her pocket, in
order to save something; the butterman ran to fetch his bonds and shares,
and the servant girl to save her silk mantilla, which she had just managed
to buy out of her savings. Every one wanted to save the best they pos-
sessed, and the brownie became possessed by the same desire; in a couple
of bounds he was up the stairs and in the student's garret. The student
was standing quite calmly at the open window, looking at the fire which
was raging in the house opposite. The little brownie seized the won-
derful book that was lying on the table, put it inside his red cap, and held
it tightly to his bosom with both hands. The most valuable treasure in
the house had been saved, and he rushed ofl^ with it, right out upon the
roof, to the top of the chimney. There he sat, illuminated by the burning
house opposite, and holding his hands on his red cap in which the treasure
lay. Now he knew where his sympathies lay, and to whom he really
belonged; but when the fire had been put out and he was himself again —
well: "I shall have to divide myself between the two," he said, " I cannot
quite give up the butterman because of the porridge!"

And, after all, it is only human! We all of us go to the butterman —
for the sake of the porridge.

THE SNOW QUEEN

THERE WERE TWO LITTLE WINDOWS OPPOSITE EACH OTHER
ON THE ROOFS OF THE HOUSES.

THE SNOW QUEEN

THE FIRST STORY

WHICH TREATS OF THE MIRROR AND THE BROKEN PIECES

WELL, now let us begin ! When we have got to the end of the
storv, we shall know more than we do at present. It is all
about a wicked troll, the worst of them all, the Devil. One day
he was in a really good humor, for he had made a mirror which had this
virtue, that everything good and beautiful which was reflected in it would

145

146 THE SNOW dUEEN

shrink to almost nothing, but all that was worthless and hideous appeared
only too distinctly, and was even magnified. The most beautiful land-
scapes looked like boiled spinach, and the best of people looked hideous, or
were seen standing on their heads with no stomach to their bodies; the
faces were so distorted that no one could recognize them, and, if one had a
freckle, in the mirror it was sure to spread all over one's nose and mouth.
"It is most amusing," said the Devil. If a good, pious thought passed
through a person's mind it was reflected so hideously in the mirror that
the chief of the trolls had to laugh at his crafty invention. All those who
went to the troll-school — for he kept such a one — went about telling
everybody that a miracle had happened ; now at last one could see what
the world and mankind really looked like. They ran about with the
mirror till at last there was not a country or a human being that had not
been reflected and distorted in it. And now they wanted to fly up to
heaven with it and mock at the angels and the Lord. The higher they
flew with the mirror the more distorted and ridiculous the reflections
became, till they could scarcely hold it for laughter. Higher and higher
they flew, nearer to God and the angels; then the mirror trembled so
violently in its distortions that it slipped from their hands and fell down
to the earth, where it broke into hundreds of millions and billions of
pieces. But just on that account it caused greater misfortune than before,
for some pieces were hardly as big as a grain of sand and these flew about
all over the world, and when they got into people's eyes they stuck there
and made everything appear to them topsy-turvy, or made them only see
the wrong side of things, for every piece had retained the same power as
the whole mirror. Some people even got a small piece into their hearts
and this was the most terrible of all; these hearts became like lumps of
ice. Some of the pieces were so large that they could be used for window-
panes, but it was scarcely worth looking at one's friend's through these
panes; other pieces were used for spectacles, and when people put on these
spectacles to see aright and be just, then things went all wrong; the Evil
One laughed till his sides ached — he felt so awfully tickled. But small
pieces of glass were still flying about in the air. Now we shall hear !

THE SNOW dUEEN

147

#f . ^Md.

KAV MANAULD

bLElJi;K FASTENED Ii
HE WENT WITH IT.

LARGE ONE, AND AWAY

THE SECOND STORY

A LITTLE BOY AND A LITTLE GIRL

In the middle of the big town, where there are so many houses and
people that there is not room enough for every one to have a Uttle garden,
and where most people must therefore be content with growing flowers in
pots, there were, however, two poor children who had a garden somewhat
bigger than a flower-pot. They were not brother and sister, but they
were just as fond of one another as if thev had been. Their parents lived
close to each other; they lived in two garrets, where the root of the one
house adjoined that of the neighboring one, with the gutter running
between them along the eaves. There were two little windows opposite
each other in the roofs of the houses; you had only to step across the gutter
to get to one window from the other.

148 THE SNOW dUEEN

Outside each window the parents had placed a large wooden box in
which they grew vegetables for their own use, and a little rose-tree, one
in each box, which thrived well. The parents had now placed the boxes
right across the gutter, so that they almost reached from one window to
the other and looked exactly like two flower beds. The creepers of the
sweet-pea hung down over the sides of the boxes, and the rose-trees shot
long branches which twined themselves around the windows while others
clustered together; it was almost like a triumphal arch of flowers and
leaves. As the boxes were very high and the children knew that they
must not climb up there, they were often allowed to step outside and sit
on their small footstools under the rose-trees, and there they could play
splendidly.

In the winter-time these pleasant hours came to an end. The win-
dows were often frozen all over, but then they heated copper pennies on
the stove and placed the warm coin against the frozen pane, and thus got
a splendid peephole, so round, so round; and then from behind would
peep a bright gentle eye, one from each window, they were those ot' the
little boy and the little girl. He was called Kay, and she, Gerda. In the
summer-time they could get to each other with one jump; in the winter
they had first to go down many stairs and then up many stairs, while the
snow was falling outside.

"It 's the white bees that are swarming!" said the old grandmother.

"Have they also a queen-bee.?" asked the little boy, for he knew that
there was such a thing among the real bees.

"That they have! " said the grandmother; "she is generally where the
swarm is thickest. She is the largest of them all and never settles on the
ground, but flies up to the black clouds again. Many a winter night
does she fly through the streets of the town looking in through the win-
dows, and the frost on the panes then becomes most wonderful, and looks
like flowers."

"Yes, I have seen that!" said both the children, and then they knew
it was true.

"Can the Snow Queen come in here?" asked the little girl.

"Let her only come," said the boy, "1 "H put her on the warm stove
and then she '11 melt."

But the grandmother smoothed his hair and told him some other
stories.

In the evening when little Kay was at home and half-undressed, he
climbed up on the chairs by the window and looked out through the little
hole; he could see the snowflakes falling outside, and one of them, the
largest of all, settled on the edge of one of the flower-boxes. The snowflake
grew larger and larger till at last it became a full-grown woman, dressed
in the most delicate white gauze; it lookecf as if it was composed of
millions of star-like flakes. She was very beautiful and graceful, but she

THE SNOW dUEEN 149

was made of ice, dazzling, glittering ice; still, she was alive, her eyes
sparkled like two bright stars, but there was no repose or rest in them.
She nodded toward the windows and beckoned with her hand. The
little boy was frightened and jumped down from the chair, and just then
it seemed as if a large bird flew past outside the window.

Next day it was clear frosty weather, and then came the thaw, and
at last the spring; the sun shone, the green shoots burst forth, the swal-
lows built their nests, the windows were opened and the two little chil-
dren were again sitting in their little garden high up in the gutter on the
root.

The roses blossomed most beautifully that summer ; the little girl had
learned a hymn, in which there was something about roses, and that made
her think of her own roses, and so she sang it to the little boy, who also
joined in, and together they sang :

" Thf roses grow in the valley,
Where the Christ-Child we shall see."

And the little ones held each other by the hand, kissed the roses, and
looked up at God's bright sunshine, and spoke to it as if the Christ-Child
were there. What beautiful summer days they were, what a blessing to
be near the fresh rose-trees, which seemed never to cease blossoming.

Kay and Gerda sat looking in the picture book of animals and birds,
when just at that moment the clock in the great church tower struck five.
Kay exclaimed: "Oh dear! I feel as if something had stabbed my heart!
And now I 've got something into my eye ! "

The little girl put her arms round his neck ; he blinked his eye, but
no — there was nothing to be seen.

" I think it is gone!" he said; but it was not gone. It was one of the
glass pieces from the mirror, the troll-mirror, which you no doubt remem-
ber, the horrible mirror, in which everything great and good that was
reflected in it became small and ugly, while everything bad and wicked
became more distinct and prominent and every fault was at once noticed.
Poor Kay had got one of the fragments right into his heart. It would
soon become like a lump of ice. It did not cause him any pain, but it
was there.

"Why do .you cry?" he asked. "And you look so ugly! There is
nothing the matter with me! Fie!" he cried suddenly, " that rose is
worm-eaten ! And look ! why, it is quite crooked ! They are ugly roses
after all, just like the boxes they are in!" And then he kicked the box
with his foot, and knocked ofi^ two roses.

"Kay, what are you doing?" cried the girl; and when he saw her
fright he knocked off another rose and rushed through his window away
from the good little Gerda.

150 THE SNOW Q.UEEN

When afterward she brought out the picture book he said it was only
lit for babies, and if the grandmother began to tell stories he was always
sure to put in an if, and if he saw his opportunity he would go behind
her, put on a pair of spectacles, and talk like her; he could mimic her
exactly, and make people laugh at him. He could soon talk and walk
like all the people in the whole street. Everything that was peculiar and
unattractive to them he was sure to imitate, and then people said: "That
boy must have a clever head!" But it was the piece of glass he had got in
his eye and the piece of glass that had stuck in his heart that caused all
this; that was the reason he teased even little Gerda, who loved him with
all her heart.

He no longer cared for the old games, he was now onlv interested in
what he considered was more sensible, thus, one winter day, when the snow
was falling, he brought a large magnifying glass and held out the tail of
his blue coat and let the snowflakes fill upon it.

"Just look through the glass, Gerda!" he said; and everv snowtiake
was magnified and looked like a splendid Hower or star with manv points,
and a most beautiful sight it was !

"Do you see how curious it is?" said Kay, "how iiuich more inter-
esting than real flowers.? And there is not a single fault in them; thev
are quite perfect, if only they do not melt away!"

Shortly afterward Kay appeared with thick gloves on, and his sledge
on his back, and shouted into Gerda's ears : " I have got leave to go sledg-
ing in the great square, where all the bovs are plaving"; and off he went.

Many of the boldest boys on the plavground used to fasten their sledges
to the peasants' carts, and in this way they got a good ride. It was a
merry time ! While the fun was at its height a large sledge came driving
past ; it was painted all white, and a person was sitting in it wrapped in a
white fur coat and with a white fur cap. The sledge drove twice round
the square and Kay managed to get his own little sledge fastened to it,
and away he went with it. They went faster and faster right through the
next street ; the driver turned round and nodded in a friendly way to
Kay, as if they were old acquaintances. Every time Kay wanted to set
free his sledge, the driver nodded again to him, and so Kay remained on
the sledge and soon they drove out of the gate of the town. The snow
then began to fall so heavily that the little boy could hardly see a hand
before him as they rushed onward ; then suddenly he let go the rope, to
get loose from the large sledge, but it was of no use, his little sledge stuck
fast to the other and they sped on as quickly as the wind. He then
cried out aloud, but nobody heard him ; the snow fell fast and furious,
and the sledge flew onward, while now and then it gave a jump, as if
they were rushing over ditches and hurdles. He became quite frightened
and wanted to say the Lord's Prayer, hut could only remember the multi-
plication table.

THE SNOW QUEEN 151

The snowriiikes became larger and larger, till at last they looked like
big white fowls ; suddenly they ran aside and the great sledge stopped and
the person who had been driving stood up ; the coat and the cap were
entirely of snow. It was a lady, very tall and erect and dazzlingly white,
it was the Snow Queen.

" We have got on quickly ! " she said, "but you are shivering with
cold! Creep in under my bearskin ! " Then she put him beside her in
the sledge and wrapped the skin round him, and he felt as if he were sink-
ing into a snowdrift.

"Do you feel cold still?" she asked, as she kissed him on his forehead.
Ugh ! it was colder than ice, it went right through his heart, which was
already half frozen ; he felt as if he were going to die — but only for a
moment, and then he was quite well again and did not feel the cold
around him any more.

"My sledge! Don't forget my sledge!" This was the tir.st thing he
remembered; it was tied to one of the white fowls, which came rushing
on behind them with the sledge on its back. The Snow Queen kissed
Kay once more, and then little (Jerda, and the grandmother, and all at
home passed out of his mind altogether.

"I shall give you no more kisses," she said; "or I should kiss vou
to death! "

Kay looked at her; she was very beautiful; a more intelligent or
lovely face he could not imagine; she did not now appear to him to be
of ice as when she sat outside the window and beckoned to him. In his
eyes she was perfect, and he did not feel the least afraid of her; he told
her he knew mental arithmetic even in fractions, and how manv square
miles and inhabitants there were in all countries, to all of which she
smiled. But he felt he did not know enough after all, and he looked up
into the great space above, whereupon she Hew with him high up on the
black cloud, while the storm whistled and roared; it seemed as if it were
singing old ballads. They flew over forests and lakes, across the ocean
and many countries ; below them the cold blast scoured the plains, the
wolves howled and the snow sparkled, and over them flew the black,
screeching crows, while the moon shone bright and clear, and by its light
he beheld the long, dreary winter's night — by day he slept at the feet of
the Snow Queen.

152

THE SNOW dUEEN

THE THIRD STORY

THE WITCH'S FLOWER GARDEN

UT how did little Gerda fare when Kay did iu)t return : Where
could he be? Nobody knew; nobody could give any tidings of
him. The boys could only tell that they had seen him tie his
little sledge to another large and splendid sledge which drove down the
street and out through the town gate. No one knew where he was;
many tears flowed and little Gerda cried long and bitterly; then they said
that he was dead, that he had been drowned in the river which flowed
past close to the town; oh, they were indeed long, dark winter days.
Then came the spring with the warm sunshine
" Kay is dead and gone," said little Gerda.
•'I don't believe it!" said the sunshine.
"He is dead and gone," she said to the swallows.

THE SNOW QUEEN 153

"We don't believe it!" they answered, and at last little Gerda did not
believe it either.

"I will put on my new red shoes," she said one morning, "those
which Kav has not seen, and then I will go down to the river and ask it
about him ! "

It was cjuite earlv ; she kissed her t)ld grandmother, who was asleep,
put on the red shoes, and went out quite alone through the town gate
toward the river.

" Is it true that you have taken my little playmate ? I will make you a
present of my red shoes if you will give him back to me."

And she thought the waves nodded to her strangely. She then took
her red shoes, the most precious she had, and threw them both out into
the river, but they fell close to the bank and the little billows soon carried
them ashore to her. It seemed as if the river would not take the dearest
treasure she had because it could not give back little Kay to her; but then
she thought she had not thrown the shoes out far enough, and so she
climbed into a boat which was lying among the rushes, and went right to
the farthest end oi' it and threw the shoes into the water. But the boat
was not fastened, and its motion as she got into it sent it adrift from the
bank. As soon as she noticed this she hastened to get out, but before she
could jump ashore the boat was an arm's length from the bank and now it
drifted still faster.

Little Gerda now became quite frightened and began to cry, but no
one heard her except the sparrows, and they could not carry her ashore;
but they flew along the banks of the river, singing as if to comfort her :
" Here we are! Here we are ! " The boat drifted with the current, while
little Gerda sat quite still in her stockinged feet; her little red shoes were
floating along behind, but they did not overtake the boat, which drifted
more quickly ahead.

The banks on both sides of the river were pretty; there were beautiful
flowers, old trees, and green slopes with sheep and cows, but not a human
being was to be seen.

" Perhaps the river is carrying me to little Kay," thought Gerda; and
then she became more cheerful and stood up in the boat, looking for many
hours at the beautiful banks of the river, till she came to a large cherry
orchard where there was a little house with strange red and blue windows
and a thatched roof, and outside stood two wooden soldiers who presented
arms to all who sailed past.

Gerda called out to them ; she thought thev were living beings, but of
course they did not answer. She was drawing near to them ; the current
was driving the boat right against the shore.

Gerda called out still louder, when an old — very old — woman came
out of the house, leaning upon a crook ; she wore a big sun-bonnet with
a broad brim painted all over with the most lovely flowers.

154 THE SNOW dUEEN

" You poor little child ! '' said the old crone ; " how did you get into
the strong, rapid current, and drift so tar out into the wide world ? " And
the old woman went right out into the water, hooked her crook fast into
the boat, pulled it ashore and lifted little (Jerda out of it.

Gerda was glad to get on land again, but was a little afraid of the
strange old woman.

" Come, tell me who you are and how vou came here ! " she said.

And Gerda told her everything, the old woman shaking her head all
the time and only muttering " Hem! Hem ! " When Gerda had told her
all and asked her if she had not seen little Kay, the woman said he had
not passed by there, but he would, no doubt, be coming that way ; she
had better be of good cheer and taste her cherries and see her Howers —
they were much prettier than any picture book. Each of them had a
story to tell. She then took Gerda by the hand and went into the little
house, locking the door after her.

The windows were high up near the ceiling and the panes were red,
blue, and yellow ; the daylight shone through them in such a strange way
in all sorts of colors. On the table stood the most delicious cherries, and
Gerda ate as many as she liked, for she was not afraid to touch them.
And while she was eating, the old woman combed her hair witli a golden
comb, till the glossy hair hung in beautiful yellow curls round the pleasant
little face, which was as round and as fresh as a rose.

"I have really been longing for such a pretty little girl as you!" said
the old woman. " \'ou will soon see how well we shall get on together,
we two!" And as she went on combing little Gerda's hair, the more
(Jerda forgot her playmate, little Kay, for the old woman was learned in
witchcraft, but she was not one of the wicked witches. She only practised
witchcraft for her own amusement, and did so now because she wanted to
keep little Gerda. She therefore went out into her garden and stretched
out her crook toward all the rose-trees, and, beautifully though they blos-
somed, she caused them all to sink into the dark ground and no one could
see where they had been standing. The old woman was afraid that if
Gerda saw the roses she would think of her own and then remember little
Kay and run away.

She now led Gerda out into the flower garden. Oh, how fragrant and
lovely it was there ! Every imaginable Hovver of every season was here in
full Idoom ; no picture book could be more variegated and beautiful.
Cierda ran joyously about and played till the sun went down behind the
lofty cherry-trees. Then she was put to sleep in a splendid bed with new
silk quilts stuffed with blue violets, and there she slept and dreamed as hap-
pily as any queen on her wedding-day.

Next day she again played with the rii)wers in the warm sunshine,
and thus many days passed. Gerda knew every flower, but numerous as
they were she seemed to feel there was one missing, but she did not know

THE SNOW aUEEN 155

which it was. Then, one day, as she sat looking at the old woman's sun-
bonnet with the painted flowers, she noticed that the prettiest of them all
was a rose. The old crone had forgotten to take it ofl^ her bonnet when
she buried the rose-trees in the grt)iuid. But that is the way when yt>u
don't keep your wits about vou!

" WHiat ! are there no roses here.?" cried Gerda, as she ran among the
flower beds, looking and searching, but there were none to be found.

She then sat down and cried, but her hot tears happened to fall just
where a rose-tree had sunk into the ground, and when the warm tears
moistened the soil the tree shot up suddenly in full bloom, just as when
it had disappeared. Gerda embraced it, kissed the roses, and thought of
the lovely roses at home, and then of little Kay.

"Oh, how I have been losing my time!" said the little girl. "Why, I
was going to find Kay! Do you know where he is?" she asked the
roses. "Do you think he is dead, and lost to usr"

"He is not dead," said the roses. "We have been under the ground,
where all the dead are, but Kay was not there!"

"Thank you," said little Gerda, and she went to the other flowers and
looked into their cups and asked: " Dt) you know where little Kay is?"

Hut all the flowers were standing in the sunshine, dreaming the fairy
tale of their own lives. Gerda heard many — very many — ot these stt)ries,
but none of the flowers knew anything about Kay.

And what did the orange-lily say ?

"Do you hear the drum ? Rat! Tat! There are only two sounds — ■
always Rat ! Tat ! Listen to the women's funeral dirge ! Listen to the
priest's cry ! The Hindoo woman is standing in her long red robe on the
funeral pile, the flames are enveloping her and her husband's dead body ;
but the Hindoo woman is thinking of the living being in the circle
around her, of him whose eyes burn hotter than the flames, and the fire
which penetrates sooner to her heart than the flames which will soon burn
her body to ashes. Can the flames of the heart die in the flames of the
funeral pile ?"

"I cannot understand it all!" said little (ierda.

"That is the story of my life," said the orange-lily.

What does the convolvulus say ?

"Over the narrow mountain path looms an old castle; the ivy is
climbing, leaf by leaf, up along the old red walls and around the balcony,
on which stands a beautiful girl; she bends over the balustrade and looks
down the road. No rose is fresher than she; no apple-blossom carried
away from the tree by the wind could float more gracefully than she.
How her magnificent silk robe rustles ! She murmurs : " Will he not come ? "

"Is it Kay you mean?" asked little (Jerda.

"I am only thinking about the fairy tale of my life, my dream,"
answered the convolvulus.

156 THE SNOW ClUEEN

What does the little snowdrop say?

" Between the trees hangs a long board suspended between ropes ; it is
a swing, and two lovely little girls, in frocks white as snow, and with long
green-silk ribbons fluttering from their hats, are sitting in it, swinging to
and fro. Their brother, who is bigger than they, stands on the swing
with one arm round the rope to steady himself, for in one hand he has a
little bowl and in the other a clay pipe; he is blowing soap-bubbles.
The swing goes backward and forward and the bubbles fly about, con-
stantly changing their color. The last bubble is still hanging at the end
of the pipe, swaying to and fro in the wind. A little black dog, as light
as the bubbles, sits up on his hind legs and wants to get on the swing;
but it never stops, and the dog fills, barks, and becomes angrv ; they tease
him, the bubbles burst — a swinging board, the picture of a bursting
bubble is my song."

"It may be very pretty, all that you tell me, but you speak in such a
sad voice, and do not mention Kay at all! What do the hyacinths say?"

"There were three beautiful sisters, fair and delicate; one was dressed
in red, the other in blue, and the third in white; hand in hand they
danced near the silent lake in the bright moonshine. They were not
elfin-maidens, they were the daughters of mankind. There was a sweet
fragranc.e in the air as the maidens disappeared, into the wood; the
fragrance became stronger — three coffins, in which lav the beiuitiful
maidens, glided away from the thicket across the lake; shining glow-
worms flew about like little floating lights. Were the dancing maidens
asleep or were they dead ? The fragrance of the flowers tells us they are
corpses; the evening bell is tolling for the dead!"

"You make me quite sad," said little Gerda. "Your perfume is so
strong, I cannot help thinking of the dead maidens! Alas! is little Kay
really dead after all ? The roses have been under the ground, and they
say no! "

"Ding, dong!" rang the bells of the hyacinths. "We are not tolling
for little Kay; we do not know liirn. W^e are only singing our own
song, the only one we know! "

And Gerda wenl to the buttercup which shone forth among the bright-
green leaves.

"You are a bright little sun," said Gerda. "Tell me, if you know,
where I can find my playmate." And the buttercup shone so brightly
and looked up at Gerda. What song would the buttercup sing? It was
not to be about Kay either.

"The sun was was shining so warmly, on the first day of spring, into
a little courtyard; the rays glided down along the neighbors' white wall,
and close by grew the first yellow flowers, sparkling like gold in the
warm sunlight. The old grandmother sat outside in her chair, her grand-
daughter, the poor, good-looking servant-girl, came home from a short

THE SNOW aUEEN 157

visit; she kissed her grandmother. There was gold, the gold of the
heart, in that blessed kiss, (iold on the lips, gold on the ground, gold
high above in the early nn)rning hour! There, that is my little story!"
said the buttercup.

"My poor old grandmother!" sighed Gerda. "She must be longing
tor me, and be anxious about me, just as she was about little Kay. But
I sl-.ali soon be home again, and then I '11 bring Kay with me. It is no
use asking the Howers ; they only know their own song, they cannot give
me any tidings!" And so she fastened up her little frock, so that she
might run the faster; but the narcissus caught her by the leg as she sprang
over it. She stopped, looked at the long flower and said:

"Perhaps you know something?" And she bent down ck^e to it.
What did she say ?

"I can see myself! I can see myself!" said the narcissus. " Oh, what
a perfume ! Up in the little garret stands a little dancer, half dressed ;
sometimes she stands on one leg, and sometimes on two — she kicks at the
whole world; she is only a phantom. She pours water out of the teapot
onto a piece of cloth which she holds in her hand; it is her corset.
Cleanliness is a virtue! Her white dress hangs on a peg, and that has
also been washed in the teapot and dried on the rtnif ! She puts it on
and ties a saffron-colored handkerchief round her neck, so that her dress
should look all the whiter. How high she kicks ! Liiok how well she
poises on one stem! I can see myself! I can see myself!"

"I dt)n't care for that at all!" said Gerda; "it isn't worth telling
me!" And then she ran toward the far end of the garden.

The gate was shut, but she fumbled with the rusty latch till it gave
way and the gate Hew open, and then little Gerda ran out, barefooted,
into the wide world. She looked back three times, but no one was
pursuing her; at last she could run no longer and sat down on a large
stone, and when she looked round she discovered that the summer was
over, and that it was late in the autumn ; one could not see that in the
beautiful garden wTiere there was always sunshine, and tlowers of every
season of the year were always in full bloom.

" (Jracious goodness! how I have been delayed!" said little Gerda;
"the autumn has set in, so I dare not rest!" And she rose to proceed on
her journey.

Oh! how sore and tired her little feet were; everything looked so
bleak and damp round about; the long willow leaves were quite yellow,
and the dew dripped like water from them. Leaf after leaf fell; the
blackthorn alone bore fruit, but it was so sour and bitter that it set one's
teeth on edge. Oh, how gray and gloomy the wide world looked!

158

THE SNOW Q.UEEN

THE FOURTH STORY

THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS

GERDA was obliged to sit down and rest again, when a large crow
came hopping across the snow just opposite to wliere she was
sitting. The crow looketi at her tor some time, turniiiu; liis
head from one side to the other, and at last lie said: "Caw! Caw! (ioo'
day! Goo' day!" He could not pronounce the words any better, but he
was kindly disposed toward the little girl and asked her where she u as
going all alone out into the wide world. CJerda understood the word
"alone" very well and felt how much it meant, and so she told the cVew
the story of her life and asked him if he had not seen Kay.

The crow nodded quite thoughtfully and said: "Perhaps I have!
Perhaps I have ! "

"What? You don't say so!" cried the little girl, ami she almost
hugged the crow to death, so vit)lently did she embrace him.

"Gently, gently!" said the crow. "I dare say it may be little Kav !
But he has no doubt forgotten you by this time for the princess!"

THE SNOW dUEEN 159

"Does he live at a princess's?" asked Gerda.

"Well, yes!" said the crow; "but I find it rather difficult to speak
your language. If you understand the crows' language I shall he able to
tell it you better."

"No, I have not learned it!" said Gerda; "but grandmother knows it.
I only wish I had learned it."

"It does not matter!" said the crow. "I will tell you as well as I
can, but I am afraid it will be badlv done after all." And so he told what
he knew.

"In the kingdom where we are now sitting lives a princess who is
very wise, but then she has read all the newspapers in the world and for-
gotten them again ; so wise is she ! The other day she was sitting on
the throne, — and that is not so very pleasant, people say, — when she
happened to hum a song which began with 'Why should I not marry!'
'Yes, there is something in that,' she said, and then she made up her
mind to marry; but she wanted a husband who understood how to answer
when spoken to, not one, in fact, who could only stand and look grand,
for that was so tiresome.

"She then summoned all her maids-of-honor, and when thev heard
what was her will they were greatly pleased. 'We are so glad to hear
that!' they all said. 'We were just thinking about the same thing the
other day!' Vou can believe every word I tell you," said the crow; "I
have a tame sweetheart at the palace who goes all over the place, and she
has told me all about it ! "

His sweetheart was, of course, a crow; for birds of a feather fiock
together, so a crow wants a crow for his mate.

" The newspapers at once appeared with a border of hearts with the
princess's initials; it was there announced that every good-looking young
man would be received at the palace and allowed to speak with the
princess, and he who by his speech showed himself most at ease there and
spoke most fluently would be chosen by the princess for her husband.
Well!" said the crow, "you must believe me, it 's as true as I sit here.
Thj people came in crowds to the palace, and there was much crushing
and running to and fro; but no one was successful either on the first or
the second day. They could all speak well enough when they were out
in the street, but when they came through the palace gate and saw the
guards in silver and the lackeys in gold, standing on the staircases, and
the great illuminated halls, they lost their heads altogether. And when
they stood before the throne where the princess was sitting, they did not
know what to say except the last word she had uttered, and she did not
care to hear that said over again. It seemed as if the people, while in
the room, had partaken of some narcotic, and were in a state of stupor
till they got out into the street again ; then they could talk and no
mistake! There was a whole row of them from the town gate to the

160 THE SNOW Q.UEEN

palace. I went in myself to have a look," said the crow. "The people
were both hungry and thirsty, but they did not get as much as a glass of
luke-warm water in the palace. Some of the more prudent had taken
sandwiches with them, but they did not give any to their neighbors; they
thought: 'Let him look hungry, and then the princess will not have him ! ' "

"But Kav, little Kay!" asked Gerda. "When does he come? Was
he in the crowd?"

"Patience! patience! We are just coming to him. It was on the
third day that a small person, without horse or carriage, came marching
quite cheerfully right up to the palace, his eyes shone like vours, he had
beautiful long hair, but was otherwise poorly dressed."

"That was Kay ! " cried Gerda in great delight. "Oh, now I liave
found him!" And she clapped her hands.

"He had a little knapsack on his back!" said the crow.

"No, that must have been his sledge," said (ierda; "for he had the
sledge with him when he left home!"

"That may be," said the crow. "I did not take particular notice, but
I heard from my sweetheart that when he came in through the palace
gate and saw the life guards in silver and the lackeys in gold on the stair-
cases he was not in the least abashed; he nodded to them and said, 'It
must be very tedious to stand on the staircase; I prefer to go inside.'
The halls were all ablaze with lights. Counselors and excellencies were
walking about in their bare feet, carrying golden vessels; it was enough to
strike any one with awe. His boots creaked dreadfully, but he was not a
bit frightened."

"That must have been Kay!" said Gerda, "I knew he had new
boots; I have heard them creak in grandmother's room."

"Yes, they did creak," said the crow; "but he went boldly straight
up to the princess, who was seated on a pearl as large as a spinning-wheel,
and all the maids-of-honor with their maids and maids' maids, and all the
gentlemen-in-waiting with their servants and servants' servants, who again
kept page-boys, were standing round about the hall, and the nearer they
stood to the door the prouder they looked. One could hardly look at
the page-boys of the servants' servants, who always went about in slippers,
so proud did they look standing in the doorway."

" It must be terrible!" said little Gerda. "And did Kay get the
princess after all?"

" If I had not been a crow, I would have taken her myself-, although
I am engaged. He is said to have spoken as well as I do, when I speak
the crows' language, at least that 's what my sweetheart tells me. He
looked a bold and handsome youth as he stood there; but he had not
come to woo the princess, only to hear some of her wisdom. He was
quite pleased with her and she with him."

"Yes, that must have been Kay!" said Gerda, "he was so clever; he

THE SNOW dUEEN 161

could do mental arithmetic even in tractions! Oh, will you not take me
to the palace P"

"Well, that is easily said!" said the crow. "But how shall we
manage it ? I will speak, with my sweetheart ahout it ; she can give us
some advice, no douht, for I must tell you such a little girl as you will
never be permitted to get right inside!"

"Yes, I shall!" said Gerda. "When Kay hears I am there he will
come out at once and fetch me ! "

"Wait for me at the stile over yonder ! " said the crow, with a twist of
his head as he Hew away.

It was not till late in the evening that the crow returned.

"Caw! Caw!" he croaked. "My sweetheart sends you her kind
love, and here is a piece of bread for you; she took it from the kitchen,
there is plenty of bread there, and you must be hungry ! You cannot
possibly get into the palace — for, look, you are barefooted ! The guards in
silver and the lackeys in gold would not allow it ; but don't cry, you shall
get in somehow. My sweetheart knows a little back staircase which leads
up to the bedroom, and she knows where she can find the key !"

And they went into the garden and along the long avenue where the
leaves were falling one after the other ; and when the lights in the palace
were extinguished, one by one, the crow led little Gerda to a back door,
which stood ajar.

Oh, how Gerda's heart was beating with anxiety and longing ! She
felt as if she were about to do something wrong, while she only wanted to
know if little Kay was there. Yes, it must be he ; she could see his clever
eves, his long hair, and could even see how he smiled, just as when they
used to sit under the roses at home. He would surely be glad to see her
when he heard what a long way she had come for his sake, and how
grieved they all were at home because he did not come back . Oh, what
fear and what joy !

They were now on the stairs, where a small lamp was burning on the
top of a cupboard ; in the middle of the room stood the tame crow, turn-
ing her head in all directions and staring at Gerda, who curtseyed as her
grandmother had taught her to do.

" My sweetheart has spoken so nicely about you, my young lady," said
the tame crow ; " your vita, as they say, is really very touching ! If you
will carry the lamp, I will go o\\ in front. We will go straight ahead, for
we shall meet no one this way."

" I fancy there is somebody coming behind us," said Gerda, as she felt
something sweep past her. Shadows of horses with living manes and the
thin legs oi huntsmen, and ladies and gentlemen on horseback seemed to
glide past her on the wall.

" They are only dreams," said the crow ; " they come to fetch the
thoughts of our royal folks to go a-hunting, which is just as well, for then

[62 THE SNOW dUEEN

you can look at them in their beds all the better. But I hope, when you
have risen to a post of dignity and honor, that you will show you have a
grateful heart ! "

"Oh, it is n't worth talking about ! " said the crow from the forest.

They now entered the first room, the walls of which were hung with
rose-colored satin and artificial flowers ; the dreams were already rushing
past them, but they swept on at such a great speed that Gerda could not
see the royal personages.

Each room was more magnificent than the last ; it was enough to be-
wilder any one. They were now in the bedroom, the ceiling ot which was
like a large palm-tree with leaves of the most costly glass, and in the mid-
dle of the room hung in a silken cord two beds, resembling lilies ; the one
in which the princess lay was white, the other was red; and it was in this
that Gerda was to look for little Kay. She pulled aside one of the red
leaves and then saw a brown neck. Oh, that must be Kay ! She called
his name aloud and held the lamp over him, — the dreams came rushing
back into the room on horseback, — he awoke, turned his head, and — it
was not little Kay.

They only resembled each other about the neck, but the prince was a
young and very handsome man. The princess peeped out from her lily-
white bed and asked what was the matter. Little (Jerda then began to
cry and told them her whole story and all that the crows had done for her.

"Poor little creature!" said the prince; and the princess praised the
crows, telling them that they were not at all angry with them, but that
they must not do it again. In the meantime they should receive a reward.

" Would you like to have your freedom and fly away ? " asked the
princess, " or would vou like an appointment as crows to the court, with
all the leavings of the kitchen as your perquisites r "

And both the crows curtseved and asked for the appointments, for thev
thought of their old age, and said : " It would be so nice to know that we
are provided for," as they put it.

And the prince got out of his bed and let Gerda sleep in it, and more
he could not do. She folded her little hands and thought: " How kind men
and animals are to me ! " And then she closed her eyes and fell into a sweet
sleep.

All the dreams came flying back into the room ; they now looked like
angels, drawing a little sledge in which Kay was sitting nodding to her.
But it was only a dream, and therefore it was all gone as soon as she
awoke.

The following day she was dressed from top to toe in silk and velvet ;
she received an invitation to remain in the palace and enjoy herself, but she
only asked for a small coach and a horse, and a little pair of shoes, and she
would again set out into the wide world to find Kay.

And she not only got the shoes, but a mufl", and exquisite clothes, and

THE SNOW dUEEN 163

when she was ready to start a new coach of pure gold was waiting for her
at the door. The prince and princess's coat-of-arms on the coach shone
like a star ; the coachman, the footman, and the postillions, for there were
postillions too, wore gold crowns on their heads. The prince and princess
helped her into the coach and wished her success. The crow from the
forest, who was now married, accompanied her for the first ten miles, fie
sat hv her side, for he could not bear riding backwards ; while the other
crow stood in the gateway flapping her wings; she did not accompany
them, tor she had suffered from headache since she had been definitely
attached to the court and had too much to eat. The inside of the coach
was stocked with fancy cakes, and under the seat were fruits and ginger-
bread nuts.

" Farewell ! firewell ! " cried the prince and princess, and little Gerda
wept, and the crow wept. Thus the first miles passed, and then the crow
also bade her farewell, and this was the saddest parting of all. The crow
fiew up into a tree and flapped his black wings as long as he could see the
coach, which sparkled like bright sunbeams.

164

THE SNOW dUEEN

THE FIFTH STORY

THE LITTLE ROBBER GIRL

THE\' drove tlirough the dark forest, hut the cDach shone like a
hright Hght, the glare of which hurt the eyes oi the rohhers in
the forest, who could scarcely hear it.

" It 's gold! It 's gold ! " they cried as they rushed out and seized hold
of the horses. Thev killed the little postillions, the coachman, ami the
footman, and dragged little Gerda out ot the coach.

"She is so fat and nice ! She has been fed on nuts! " said the old rob-
ber woman, who had a long bristly beard and eyebrows, which hung down
over her eyes. " She is as good as a little fatted lamb ! Ah, how nice
she'll taste ! " And so she pulled out her bright knife, the glitter of which
was terrible to behold.

" Oh, dear !" the woman shouted just at that iinMiieiit ; she had been bit-
ten on the ear by her own little daughter, who was hanging on her back
and was as wild and ungovernable as could be. " Oh, you wicked brat ! "
said the mother, who could not find the time just then to kill Gerda.

THE SNOW dUEEN 165

"She must play with me!" said the little robber girl. "She must
give me her muff and her pretty frock, and sleep with me in my bed !"
And then she bit her mother again so that she jumped into the air and
twirled round and round, while all the robbers laughed and said :

" Look how she is dancing with her brat! "

"I want to get into the ct)ach ! " said the little robber girl; and she
would and must have her own way, for she was such a spoiled and self-
willed child. She and Gerda sat up in the coach, and away they went
over stock and stone far into the forest. The little robber girl was just
as big as Gerda, but much stronger and more broad-shouldered; her skin
was dark and her eyes quite black; they looked almost melancholy. She
took little Gerda round the waist and said: "They shall not kill you, as
long as I do not get angry with you ! You are a princess, I suppose?"

" No," said little Gerda, and told her about evervthing she had gone
through, and how fond she was of little Kay.

The robber girl looked earnestly at her, gave a little nod with her
head, and said : " They shall not kill you, even if I get angry with you,
for then I would rather do it myself" And ;o she dried Gerda's tears and
put both her hands into the beautiful muff, which was so soft and warm.

The coach now stopped ; they were in the middle of the courtyard of
a robbers' castle, the walls of which were cracked from top to bottom, and
where ravens and crows iicw in and out of the open holes, and the big
bulldogs, which looked as if they could swallow a man, jumped high in
the air, but they did not bark, for that was prohibited.

In the large old smoky hall a big fire was burning in the middle of
the stone floor ; the smoke ascended to the ceiling and had to rind a wav
out tor itself ; a large caldron of soup was boiling on the rire, and both
hares and rabbits were being roasted on spits before it.

" ^'ou shall sleep here with me and all my little animals to-night!"
said the robber girl. They had something to eat and drink, after which
they went over into a corner where there was some straw and blankets.
On some laths and poles above their heads were sitting about a hundred
pigeons, which all appeared to be asleep, but they turned their heads a lit-
tle when the little girls came into the room.

" They are all mine," said the little robber girl, and quickly seized
hold of one of the nearest, holding it by the feet and shaking it so that it
Happed its wings. "Kiss it!" she cried, and dashed it into Gerda's face.
" There are the wood-pigeons ! " she went on, and pointed to a hole high
up on the wall, with a number of laths nailed across it. " Those two are
a couple of rascals from the woods. They would fiy away directly if they
were not properly shut up ; and here is my old sweetheart Ba ! " she said,
as she tugged at the antlers of a reindeer, who had a bright copper ring
round his neck and was tied up. " We have to look closely after him, too,
else he would also run away from us. Every evening I tickle his neck

166 THE SNOW Q_UEEN

with that sharp knife of mine, of which he is terribly afraid! " And the lit-
tle girl pulled out a long knife from a crevice in the wall and drew it
across the reindeer's neck ; the poor animal kicked out with its legs, and
the robber girl laughed and then pulled Gerda into bed with her.

"Do you take the knife to bed with your" asked Gerda, looking
somewhat scared at it.

" I always sleep with a knife," said the little robber girl. " One never
knows what may happen. But tell me again what you have already told
me about little Kay and why you went out into the wide world." And
Gerda told her story over again, while the wood-pigeons were cooing up
in their cage and the other birds slept. The little robber girl put her arm
round Gerda's neck and held the knife in her other hand, and slept so
soundly that one could hear her ; but Gerda could not close her eyes at all,
for she did not know whether she was to live or die. The robbers sat
round the tire, singing and drinking, while the old woman turned somer-
saults. Oh, it was a horrible sight for the little girl !

Then the wood-pigeons suddenly cried, " Coo ! Coo ! we have seen
little Kay! A white fowl carried his sledge while he sat in the Snow
Queen's sledge as they drove through the forest and we lay in our nests ;
her icy breath killed all the young ones except us two. Coo! Coo ! "

"What are you saying up there?" cried (Jerda. "Where was the
Snow Queen gt)ing ? Do you know anything about it?"

"She was going to Lapland, no doubt, for there is always snow and ice.
Just ask the reindeer who is fastened to the rope over there."

" Yes, there is ice and snow there," said the reindeer. " It is a glo-
rious place. There you can freely roam about in the great glittering val-
leys. There the Snow Queen pitches her summer tent, but her stronghold
is near the North Pole on the island called Spitzbergen ! "

"Oh, Kay! little Kay ! " sighed (Jerda.

" You must lie quiet," said the robber girl, " else you will feel my
knife in your body ! "

In the morning Gerda told her everything that the wood-pigeons had
said, and the little robber girl looked quite serious, but nodded her head
and said, "It does n't matter ! it does n't matter! Do you know where
Lapland is r " she asked the reindeer.

" Who should know better than I ? " the reindeer said, its eyes spark-
ling with excitement. " I was born and bred there ; there I used to scour
the snow-fields."

"Just li.sten," said the robber girl to Gerda. "You see all the men
are gone, but mother is still here and will be for some time, but later in
the morning she takes a drink out of the big bottle over there, and after-
ward she takes a little nap ; then I '11 do something for you ! "

She now jumped out of bed, threw her arms round her mother, pulled
her mustache, and said, "Good morning, my own sweet nanny-goat!"

THE SNOW dUEEN 167

And the mother snapped her nose till it was both red and blue, but it was
all done out of pure love.

When the mother had had her drink out of the bottle and was taking
a little nap, the robber girl went across to the reindeer and said, "I should
like very much to tickle you a good many times still with my sharp knife,
for then you are so funny ; but never mind, I will undo your rope and set
you free so that you may set out for Lapland; but you must use your legs
and carry this little girl for me to the Snow Queen's castle, where her play-
mate is. You heard, of course, what she said, tor she spoke loud enough,
and you were listening."

The reindeer jumped for joy. The robber girl lifted little Gerda on
its back and took care to tie her fast, and even to give her a little cushion
to sit on. "I don't mind giving them back to you," she said, "but here
are your fur-lined boots, for you will find it cold up there ; I must keep
the muff, though, it is so pretty. All the same you shall not feel cold.
Here are mother's large woolen gloves, which will reach right up to your
elbows. Put your hands in ! Now they look just like my ugly mother's ! "

And Gerda wept for joy.

" I don't like to see you whimpering," said the little robber girl. "You
must look pleased and happy now. Here are two loaves and a ham for
you, so that you shall not starve."

The provisions were fastened to the reindeer's back, and the little
robber girl opened the door and called all the big dogs into the room,
after which she cut the rope with her knife and said to the reindeer, "Be
off! But look well after the little girl."

And Gerda stretched out her hands with the large gloves toward the
robber girl and said, "Farewell." And the reindeer set off and flew across
bushes and logs of trees, through the big forest, over bogs and steppes, as
fast as ever he could. The wolves howled and the ravens croaked.
"Whizz ! Whizz! " was heard in the sky, which was covered with fiery-
red streaks.

"They are my old friends the Northern lights!" said the reindeer.
"Look how they shine ! " And so he ran still faster, by night and by day.
The loaves were eaten, and the ham too, when they came to Lapland.

168

THE SNOW Q.UEEN

THE SIXTH STORY

THE LAPWOMAN AND THE FINWOMAN

They stopped before a miserable little hut ; the roof went right down
to the ground, and the door was so low that the family had to creep on
all fours when thev wanted to go out or in. There was nobody at home
except an old Lapwoman, who was cooking Hsh over a train-oil lamp.
The reindeer told her the whole of Gerda's story, but only after having
first told his own, which he considered was more important, and (ierda
was so benumbed with cold that she was not able to speak.

"Ah, poor creature!." said the Lapwoman, "then you still have far
to go ! You must travel four hundred miles into Finmark, tor that is
where the Snow Queen spend." her summer and burns blue lights every
evening. I will write one or two lines on a dried codfish, as I have no
paper, and give it to you for the Finwoman up there ; she can give you
better information than I."

THE SNOW QUEEN 169

And when Gerda had become warm and had had something to eat and
drink, tlie Lapwoman wrote a tew words on a dried codfish, told (ierda
to look, well after it, and tied her fast to the reindeer again, and off he
went at tidl speed. " Whizz ! whizz ! " was heard, while up in the
heavens the most beautiful blue Northern lights were blazing the whole
night ; and then they came to Finmark and knocked at the chimney of
the Finwoman's hut, tor it had not even a door.

It was so terribly hot inside that the Finwoman herself went about
almost naked ; she was small and dirty-looking. She loosened little Gerda's
clothes at once, took off' her big gloves and boots, or else it would have
been too hot for her in the hut, put a piece of ice on the reindeer's head,
and then began to read what was written on the codfish. She read it
three times and then she knew it by heart, after which she put the fish
into the pot, which was boiling on the fire, for it could very well be eaten,
and she never wasted anything.

The reindeer first told his own story and then little (Jerda's, and the
F'inwoman blinked with her knowing eyes, but did not say anything.

"You are st) wise," said the reindeer; "I know you can bind all the
winds in the world with a piece of thread; when the skipper loosens one
knot he gets fair wind, if he loosens the second a stiff gale springs up, and
if he loosens the third and the fourth it will raise such a storm that the
forests are blown down. Will you not give the little girl a potion so that
she will get twelve men's strength and be able to overcome the Snow
Queen r "

"Twelve men's strength!" said the F'inwoman. "Well, that
would n't be of much use ! " And then she went to a shelf and took down
a large roll of skin, which she unrolled; it was inscribed with strange
characters, which the Finwoman began reading, and went on with it till
the perspiration fell in drops from her forehead.

But the reindeer begged again so hard for little Gerda, and Gerda,
with tears in her eyes, looked so entreatingly at the Finwoman, that the
eyes of the latter again began to blink, and, leading the reindeer into a
corner, the Finwoman put some fresh ice on his head and whispered:

" Little Kay is with the Snow Queen sure enough, and finds everything
there acctirding to his mind and liking, believing it is the finest place in
the world; but that comes of his having a glass splinter in his heart and a
little speck of glass in his eye. They must be got out or he will never be
himself again, and the Snow Queen will retain her power over him ! "

" But can't you give little Gerda something to drink so that she may
become strong enough to overcome all this.?"

" I cannot give her greater power than she already possesses. Do you
not see how great it is ? Do you not see how men and animals must serve
her, how she, barefooted, has got on so safely through the world? She
must not be told by us of her power; it is seated in her heart, where it will

170 THE SNOW dUEEN

remain ; it consists in her being such a sweet and innocent child. If she
cannot obtain access herself to the Snow Queen, and remove the bits of
glass from little Kay, we cannot help her. Two miles from here the
Snow Queen's garden begins; carry the little girl there and put her down
by the great bush which stands full of rich berries in the snt)\\ . Don't
stop there long gossiping, but make haste back here." And the Fin-
woman lifted little Gerda up on the reindeer, wht) set out as fast as he
could.

" Oh, I have n't got my boots ! I hiue n"t got my gloves! " cried little
Gerda as soon as she felt the biting cold ; hut the reindeer dared not stop ;
he ran till he came to the great bush with the red berries. There he put
Gerda down and kissed her mouth, while big bright tears ran down the
animal's cheeks, and then he trotted back as quicklv as he could. There
stood poor Gerda without shoes and without ghnes in the midst of the
terrible ice-cold Finmark.

She ran as fast as her legs could carry her, when she encountered a
whole regiment ot snowHakes; but they did n't hill down from the sky,
which was quite bright and full of shining Northern lights. The snow-
Hakes ran along the ground and grew larger the nearer they came; Gerda
well remembered how big and weird they had appeared to her when she
looked at them through the magnifying glass, but now thev were certainly
much bigger and more terrible ; they were alive and were the outposts of
the Snow Queen. They had the most wonderful shapes: some of them
looked like great, ugly porcupines, others like coils of snakes putting forth
their heads, and others again like small fat bears with bristling hairs; all
were dazzlingly white, all were living snowHakes.

Little Gerda then said the Lord's Prayer ; the cold was so great that
she could see her own breath, it seemed like a jet of steam issuing from
her mouth; her breath grew thicker and thicker and formed itself into
little bright angels, who grew larger and larger as soon as they touched the
ground. Thev all had helmets on their heads, and spears and shields in
their hands; their numbers increased every moment, and when Gerda had
finished her prayer there was a whole legion around her. They struck at
the terrible snowHakes with their spears and shattered them into a hundred
pieces, and little Gerda could then proceed safely and cheerfully on her
way. The angels patted her feet and hands so that' she did not feel the
cold so much, and she walked on rapidlv toward the Snow Queen's castle.

But we will now first see how Kay is faring. He certainly was not
thinking of little Gerda, and least of all tbat sbe might be standing outside
the castle.

THE SNOW dUEEN

171

THE SEVENTH STORY

WHAT HAD HAPPENED IN THE SNOW QUEEN'S CASTLE
AND WHAT HAPPENED LATER ON

Tl^K walls of the castle were made of the drifting sncnv, and the
windows and doors ot" the CLitting winds; there were over a hun-
dred halls, according to how the snow had been drifting, the
largest of which extended i'or many miles. All were lighted by the
bright Northern lights; but how vast and empty, iiow icy cold and
dazzling white they all were! There were ne\er anv amusements here,
not even a little bears' ball, for which the storm could have supplied the
music, and at which the ice bears could ha\e danced on their hind legs
and shown their elegant manners; there were never anv little card parties,
with slaps on the snout and pattings of paws; never any cozy little coffee
parties and gossiping at Miss White-Fox's. The vast halls of the Snow
Queen's castle were cold and deserted. The Northern lights shone so
brightlv, and the ravs could be seen so distinctly, that they might be

172 THE SNOW dUEEN

counted both when they were highest in the heavens and when they were
at their lowest. In the middle of" the empty and endless snow-hall was a
frozen lake, which had cracked into a thousand pieces, but every piece
was so exactly like the other that it formed a complete work of art. In
the center of the lake sat the Snow Queen when she was at home; she
used to say that she sat in the "mirror of reason," and that it was the
only one and the best in this world.

Little Kay was quite blue, almost black with cold, but he did not
feel it, for had she not kissed away his susceptibility to cold, and was
not his heart almost a lump of ice ? He was dragging some flat pieces
of ice which he placed in all manner of wavs, as he wanted to form
something out of them; just like when we arrange small pieces of wood
into figures, which we call a Chinese puzzle. Kay was forming some
very intricate figures: it was the ice game of reason. In his eyes the
figures were very remarkable and of the highest importance; the cause of
this was the piece of glass which stuck in his eye! He formed complete
figures which represented a written word, but he was never able to form
the word he most wanted. It was the word " Eternity," and the Snow
Queen had said: "If you can solve that figure, vou shall be your own
master, and I will make you a present of the whole world and a pair of
new skates." But he could not.

"I will now Ay away to the hot countries!" said the Snow Queen.
"I want to peep down into the black caldrons!" They were the vol-
canoes, Etna and Vesuvius, as they are called. " I want to whiten them
a little! It 's quite necessary; it will do good on the top of lemons and
grapes!" And awav flew the Snow Queen, and Kay sat quite alone in
the large empty hall, which was many miles long, and looked at the
pieces of ice and pondered and pondered till he groaned; he sat quite
stiff and motionless, one would have thought he was frozen.

Just then little (Jerda entered the castle through the great gate where
a biting wind was raging, but she said her evening prayers, and the wind
went down, as if it wanted to go to sleep. She stepped into the great,
empty, cold rooms, — when suddenly she saw Kay; she knew him, flew
to him, threw her arms round his neck and held him fast as she cried :

I "

" Kay ! dear little Kay I So I have found you at last

But he sat quite motionless, stiff and cold. Then little Gerda began
to cry and wept hot tears which fell upon his breast ; they penetrated to
his heart, and thawed the lump of ice and consumed the little piece of
glass in there. He looked at her, and she sang :

Tfie roses grow in the valley.
Where the Christ-Child we shall see !

Then Kav burst into tears; he cried so that the splinter of glass
rolled out of his eye; he recognized her and shouted joyfully: "Gerda!

THE SNOW aUEEN 173

dear, little Gerda ! Where have vou been so long? And where have I
heenr" And lie Umked all around Iiini. "How cold it is here! How
great and eniptv it all seems here!" And he clung to Gerda, while she
laughed and cried tor joy. Their delight was so great that even the
blocks oi' ice began to dance about for joy, and when they were tired and
settled down they formed themselves into the very word which the Snow
Queen had said that he must find out if he were to become his own
master, and that she would tlien make him a present of the whole world
and a pair of new skates.

And Gerda kissed his cheeks and their bloom came back again ; she
kissed his eves and they shone like her own ; she kissed his hands and feet
and he became hale and hearty. The Snow Queen might return when
she chose; his warrant ot release sttH)d written there in sparkling blocks
ot ice.

And thev took each t)ther by the hand and wandered out of the great
castle; they talked ot grandmother and of the roses on the roof, and
wherever thev went the winds lay down to rest, and the sun shone forth.
When they came to the bush with the red berries they found the reindeer
waiting for them ; he had a young reindeer cow with him, whose udders
were full of milk; she gave the young folks a warm drink, and kissed
them on the mouth. They then carried Kav and (Jerda, first to the
FinwiMnan, where they warmed themselves in her hot room and where
they got to know everything about the journey home; then to the Lap-
woman, who had made new clothes tor them and got her sledge ready
for them.

And the two reindeer ran side by side and accompanied them to the
border ot the district ; here the first green shoots were to be seen, and here
they took leave of the reindeer and the Lapwoman, and they all said,
"Farewell." And then the first little bird began to twitter, and the forest
was full of green shoots. Out of the forest came a young girl with a
bright red cap on her head and pistols in front of her, riding on a beauti-
ful horse, which Gerda knew at once; it was one of the team which had
been harnessed to the golden coach. It was the little robber girl, who
had got tired of staying at home, and was now going first to the North,
and afterward in some other direction if it was not to her liking; she
knew Gerda at once and Gerda knew her, and thev were both delighted.

""^\iu are a nice fellow to be running after!" she said to little Kay;
" I should like to know whether you deserve that anvbody should run to
the end of the world for your sake! "

But Gerda patted her cheeks and asked about the prince and princess.

"They have gone to foreign lands," said the robber girl.

"And where is the crow?" asked little Gerda.

"The crow is dead," she answered. "The tame sweetheart is now
a widow and goes about with a bit of black worsted round her leg, com-

174 THE SNOW dUEEN

plaining and wailing most pitifully, but it is all humbug! But tell me
now how you fared and how you got hold of him ! "

And Gerda and Kay both told her all that had happened.

"And snipp-snapp-snurr-bassellurr ! " said the robber girl, taking them
both by the hand and promising them that should she ever pass through
their town, she would be sure to pay them a visit, and then she rode oft
into the wide world. But Kay and (ierda walked on hand in hand, and
as they proceeded the spring became more and more lovely with ftt)wers
and green foliage; the church bells were ringing and they recognized the
lofty steeple and the big town — it was the one in which they lived.
They entered the town and found their way to their grandmother's door;
they went up the stairs, and into the parlor, where everything was in the
same place as before. The clock said, "Tick! tick!" and the hands
moved on as usual; but as they passed in at the door they discovered that
they had become grown-up people. The roses on the roof could be seen
in full bloom through the open windows, and there were the little foot-
stools; Kay and Cierda sat down, holding each other by the hand; they
had forgotten the cold, empty splendor of the Snow Queen's castle as if
it were a distressing dream of the past.

Grandmother was sitting in the bright sunshine, reading aloud from
the Bible: "Except ye become as little children, ve shall in no wise enter
into the Kingdom of God."

And Kay and Gerda looked into each other's eyes, and all at once
thev understood the old hymn:

The roses grow in the valley.
Where the Christ-Child vvc 'shall see I

There thev both sat, grown up, vet children in heart, and it was sum-
mer— the warm, blessed summer.

THE SWINEHERD

rHE PRINCE MADE A PRETTY CALDRuN WITH BELLS ALL AROUND IJ

THE SWINEHERD

THERE was once upon a time a poor prince who had a kingdom
which was very small, but quite big enough to get married upon,
and married he would be.

It was rather bold of him, to be sure, that he should dare to say to
the emperor's daughter: "Will you have me?" But he did do it, tor
his name was renowned far and wide, and hundreds of princesses would
have said, "Yes," and thanked him into the bargain; but do you think
she did?

Now you shall hear.

On the grave of the prince's father there grew a rose-tree — oh, such a
lovely rose-tree ! It blossomed only every fifth year, and then it bore
only a single rose, the fragrance of which was so sweet that every one who
smelled it forgot all his cares and troubles. And then he had a nightingale
which could sing as if every possible melodv was fixed in its little throat.
This rose and this nightingale the princess should have, and they were
therefore both put into two large silver caskets and sent to her.

The emperor ordered the presents to be carried into the large hall,
where the princess was playing at "receiving visitors" with her maids of
honor, — they had nothing else to do, — and when she saw the large silver
caskets with the presents she clapped her hands with joy.

177

178 THE SWINEHERD

" If it were only a little pussy cat ! " she exclaimed — but it was only
the lovely rose.

" Oh, how beautit'ully it is made ! " said the maids of honor.

" It is more than beautiful ! " said the emperor; " it is pretty ! "

But when the princess put out her hand to feel it she very nearly burst
out crying.

" Fie, papa ! " she said. " Why, it is not an artihcial one, it is a real one ! "

" Fie," said all the court, " it is a real rose ! "

" Let us first see what there is in the t)ther casket before we get
angry ! " remarked the emperor, and so the nightingale was brought out.
It sang so beautifully that no one could have anything to say against it at
the time.

" Super he ! Charmant ! " exclaimed the maids of honor ; thev all spoke
French, the one worse than the otiier.

" How that bird reminds me of our kite bchned empress's musical
box ! " said an old cavalier. " Ah, ves ! it is tpiite the same tone, the
same execution."

"Yes! " said the emperor, and he began to cry like a little child.

" I should n't have thought it was a real bird! " said the princess.

"Yes, it is a real bird," said they who had brought it.

" Well, you may let that bird fly," said the princess, and she would on
no account allow the prince to come and present himself.

Hut he did ncU let himself be disheartened ; he blackened his face,
pulled his cap down over his eyes, and knocked at the gate.

" Good day. Emperor ! " he said ; " can you find something tor me to
dt) here in the palace.?"

" Well, there are so many that come here to ask for a place! " said the
emperor; "but wait a bit — I want some one \\\\o can look at'ter pigs. We
have got a good many of them.'

And so the prince was engaged as imperial swineherd. He got a
miserable little room near the pigsty, and there he had to remain. He
sat working all day and toward evening he had made a pretty little caldron,
with bells all round it, and as soon as the caldron boiled the bells rang out
so prettily and playctl the old melodv :

" Oh, thou darling Augustin,
All 's lost and gone I '"

But the most remarkable thing altout it was that, when one put one's
fingers into the steam that came from the caldron, one could at once smell
what kind of dinner was being prepared in every kitchen in the town.
That was quite a difl^erent thing to the rose.

The princess soon came walking past with all her maids ot honor, and
when she heard the melody she stopped and looked quite pleased, for she

THE SWINEHERD 181

could also play "Oh, thou darling Augustiu "; it was the only tune she
could play, and that she played with one Hnger.

"Why, that 's the one I play!" she said. "This must he a well
hrought up swineherd. Just go and ask hiin the price of the instru-
nient."

And so one ot the maids of honor had to run in, hut first she put on
her wooden clogs.

" What will you take for that caldron ?" asked the maid ot honor.

" I want ten kisses from the princess for it ! " said the swineherd.

"Gracious goodness!" said the maid of honor.

" Well, I sha'n't take less! " said the swineherd.

"Well, what does he say?" said the princess.

" I really cannot tell vou," said the maid of honor, " it is too
dreadful ! "

"Then you may whisper it!" said the princess, and the maid of
honor whispered it.

" He is very rude!" said the princess, and walked away at once. But
when she had gone some distance the hells rang again so prettily :

"Oh, thou darling Augustin,
All 's lost and gonr I "

" Listen!" said the princess; "just ask him if he will take ten kisses
from mv maids of honor."

"No, thank you," replied the swineherd; "ten kisses from the
princess, or I keep my caldron."

" How tiresome! " said the princess; "hut you ladies will have to stand
in front of me, so that nobody can see me."

And the maids of honor stood round her and spread out their skirts,
and so the swineherd got the ten kisses and she got the caldron.

Well, now they had a merry time of it ! The pot was kept boiling
the whole evening and all day long ; there was not a kitchen in the whole
town hut what they knew what was being cooked there, at the chamber-
lain's as well as at the shoemaker's.

The maids of honor danced about and clapped their hands.

" We know who is going to have sweet soup and pancakes. We know
who is going to have porridge and cutlets. How interesting it is ! "

" Highly interesting !" said the first lady of honor.

"Yes, yes, but hold your tongues, for I am the emperor's daughter!"

" Gracious goodness!" said all of them.

The swineherd, that is to say the prince — but of course they did not
know he was anything but a real swineherd— did not let a day pass without
doing something, and so he made a rattle, which, on being swung round.

182

THE SWINEHERD

played all the waltzes, galops, and polkas known from the creation of the
world.

"That is supcrbc!'' said the princess as she passed bv ; " I have never
heard a more beautiful composition! Listen! |ust 'go in and ask him the
price of the instrument; but I sha'n't kiss him."

"He wants a hundred kisses from the princess!'' said the maid ot
honor who had been in to ask him.

" I think he is crazy!" said the princess, and so she walked away, but
when she had gone some distance she stopped. " We ought to encourage

)H, WHAT A MISKKABLK IKKATI' KK I AM

I HE I'RINCESS.

art," she said, "and I am the emperor's daughter. TeM him he shall
have ten kisses like yesterday, and the rest he can have tVom my maids of
honor ! "

"But we would rather not!" said the maids of honor.

" That 's all nonsense," said the princess; "if I can kiss him, surely \nu
can do so as well. Remember I give you your board and wages." And so
the maid of honor had to go in to the swineherd again.

"A hundred kisses from the princess," he said, "i>r each keeps his
own! "

" Stand before me ! " she said, and all the maids of honor placed them-
selves around while he kissed the princess.

"What is that crowd doing down there by the pigsty.?" asked the

THE SWINEHERD

183

emperor, as he stepped out on the balcony ; he rubbed his eyes and put
on liis spectacles. " Why, it is the maids of ]ioni)r at some of their
tricks. I shall have to go down there!" And so he pidled up his slippers
at the back; for they were shoes which were trodden down at the heel.

Gracious goodness ! what a hurry he was in !

As soon as he came down into the ct)urtyard, he began to walk quietly ;
the maids of honor were so taken up with counting the kisses in order
that there might be fair play — that he should not get too many, but at
the same time not too few — they did not notice the emperor. He
raised himselt on the tips of his toes.

"What does this mean?" he exclaimed, when he saw them kissing,
and he hit them on the head with liis slipper, just as the swineherd
got his eightieth kiss. "Otf you go! ' shouted the emperor, for he was
angry, and both the princess and the swineherd were expelled from his
empire.

There she was sitting, crying, while the swineherd was scolding and
the rain pouring down.

"Oh, what a miserable creature I am!" cried the princess; "if only I
had taken that handsome prince ! Oh, how unhappy I am ! "

And the swineherd went behind a tree, rubbed the blacking off his
face, threw aside the dirty clothes, and stepped out in his princely dress,
looking so handsome and grand that the princess ct)uld not help
courtesying to him.

"I have learned to despise you!" he said, "You would not have an
honest prince ! You did not understand the rose and the nightingale, but
you could kiss the swineherd for the sake of a musical toy ! Now you
can make the best ot it ! "

And so he went into his kingdom, shut the door after him, and bolted
it ; slie could now stand outside and sing :

"Oh, thou tiarling Augustin,
Ail 's lost and gone ! "

THE SWEETHEARTS

THK TOP COULD SEE THE liAI.L FLYING HIGH UP IN THE AIR LIKE A 1!IK

^':1;^'Ql-<M^if

' —T-W

THE SWEETHEARTS

ATOP and a hall were lying together in a drawer among some othor
toys, and the top said to the ball : " Shall we not be sweethearts,
since we are together in the same drawer ? "' But the ball,
which was made of morocco, and thought just as much of herself as any
fine lady, would not give any answer to such a proposal.

Next day the little boy who owned the toys came and painted the top

187

188 THE SWEETHEARTS

red and yellow, and knocked a brass nail into the middle of it ; the top
looked quite splendid as it was spinning round.

"Look at me!" he said to the ball. "What do you say now? Shall
we not be sweethearts ? We should suit one another so well ; vou could
jump and I dance. No one could be happier than we two !"

" Do you think si).?" said the ball; "you know, I suppose, that nn
father and mother were morocco slippers and I have a cork in my
body?"

"Yes, but I am made of mahogany," said the top, "ami the sheriff
himself turned me; he has a lathe of his own, and he took great pleasure
in making me."

"But can I depend on that?" said the ball.

"May I never be whipped again if I tell a lie!" answered the top.

"You speak very well for yourself!" said the ball, "but I cannot
accept you; I am as good as engaged to a swallow. Every time I fly up
in the air he puts his head out of his nest and says: 'Will you?
Will your' And in my heart I have already answered, 'Yes,' so that
it is as good as a betrothal ; but I will promise you that I shall never
forget you ! "

"Well, there is n't much comfort in that!" said the top; and so they
did not speak to each other again.

Next day the ball was taken out; the top could see her ri\ ing high
up in the air like a bird, till at last he could not see her at all. Each
time she came back, but as she touched the ground she always made a
high bound; that was done either because she longed to jump again or
because she had a cork in her body. The ninth time the ball disappeared
and did not return ; the boy looked and searched for her, but she was
gone.

" I know where she is," sighed the top ; "she is in the swallow's nest,
and has married the swallow."

The more the top thought about her the more he became infatuated
with her; just because he could not get her his love increased — that
she should have chosen another made it only the more annoying. So the
top whirled round and hummed, but was always thinking of the ball,
who in his imagination became more and more beautiful. Thus several
years passed by, and so it was now an old love.

And the top was no longer young. But one day he was gilded all
over; never before had he looked so splendid — he was now a golden
top, and whirled about till you could hear him humming far off. Yes,
it was a grand sight ! liut suddenly he bounded too high and — he was
gone I

They looked and searched everywhere, even down in the cellar, but
the top could not be found.

Where could he be ?

THE SWEETHEARTS

189

He had jumped into the dust-bin, where there were all sorts of rubbish
— cabbage-stalks, sweepings, and gravel that had been washed down
through the gutter.

" W^ell, I seem to have got into a nice place ! My gilding will soon
come off here. But what wretched creatures have I fallen amongst?"
he said, looking askance at a long cabbage-stalk which had been plucked
of all its green, and a curious round thing which looked like an old
apple. But it was not an apple; it was an old ball which had been lying
for many years up in the gutter under the roof, and through which the
water had been oozing.

" Thank Heaven, here is one ot one's own class, whom one can speak
to!" said the ball, looking at the gilt top. "I am, strictly speaking, of
morocco, sewed by maidenly hands, and have a cork in my body, but no
one would think it, to look at me. I was very near getting married to a
swallow, but then I fell into the gutter, and there I have been lying for live
years with the water oozing through me. It is a long time, believe me,
for a maiden ! "

But the top did not say anything. He was thinking of his old sweet-
heart, and the more he heard, the clearer it became to him that it was she.

fust then the servant girl came to emptv the dust-bin : " Hullo !
there 's the gilt top ! " she exclaimed.

And the top was again brought into the house and became an object
oi' esteem and appreciation. But nothing more was heard of the ball, and
the top never spoke ot his old love ; love soon dies when one's sweetheart
has been King tor (i\e vears in a gutter with the water oozing through
her; in tact, one would never know her again when one met her in the
dust-bin.

THE PINE-TREE

FAR IN THE FOREST STOOD A PRETTY PINE-TREE.

THE PINE-TREE

FAR ill the forest stood ;i very pretty pine-tree; it had plenty ot space;
the sunshine could reach it and it had plenty of air. Round about
grew many bigger companions, both pines and firs; but the little
pine-tree was in such a hurry to grow, it did not think of the warm sun-
shine and the fresh air. It did not even trouble itself about the peasant
children who ran about chattering when thev came tt) gather wild straw-
berries and raspberries.

They would often ct)me with a whole jar full of berries, or with the
strawberries threaded on a straw, and sit down bv the little tree and ex-
claim: "Oh, what a prettv little one!" The pine did not at all like
this. The next year it was a long joint taller, and the following year it

193

194 THE PINE-TREE

had grown still a joint longer, for you can always tell by the joints on a
pine-tree how many years it has been growing.

"Oh, if I were only such a big tree as the others!" sighed the little
tree, "then I might spread my branches out tar around me, and from the
top look out over the whole world ! The birds would then build their
nests among my branches, and when the wind was blowing I could make
my bow just as grandly as the others over there!"

It took no pleasure in the sunshine, in the birds, or the red clouds
which sailed over it morning and evening.

If it happened to be winter, and the snow lay glittering white all
around it, a hare would often come running along and jump right over the
little tree — oh, it was irritating! But two winters passed, and in the third
the tree had grown so big that the hare had to run round it. " Oh, to
grow, to grow, to become big and old, that is the only thing worth living
for in this world!" thought the tree.

In the autumn the wood-cutters always came and felled some of the
largest trees. This was done every year, and the young pine-tree, which
had now grown fairly big, trembled at the thought of it ; for the big noble
trees fell to the ground with a crash and a groan, the branches were cut
off, the trees looked quite naked, long, and lanky — they could hardly be
recognized. Thev were then put on carts and drawn by horses out ot the
forest.

Where were they going r What was going to be done with them .?

In the spring, when the swallows and the storks came, the tree asked
them: "Do you know where they have been taken to? Did you meet
them r "

The swallows did not know anything, but the stork, looking serious,
nodded his head and said: "Yes, I think so. I met many new ships on
my way from Egypt. They had stately masts. I think I may say the\-
were your trees, for there was a smell of the pine about them. I bring
you greetings from them; they looked stately, quite stately."

"Oh, if I were only big enough to fly across the ocean! But what
is the ocean and what is it like?"

"Well, that 's too long a story to explain," said the stork, and walked
away.

"Rejoice in your youth," said the sunbeams; "rejoice in your fresh
growth and the young life you possess."

And the wind kissed the tree and the dew wept tears over it; but the
pine-tree did not understand that.

As Christmas-time was drawing near, many young trees were cut
down ; some of them were not even as big or as old as the pine-tree which
was so restless and impatient, and always wanting to get away. These
young trees, which were always the most beautiful, were not denuded of
their branches; they were placed on a cart and drawn by horses out of
the forest.

THE PINE-TREE 195

"Where are they going to?" asked the pine-tree. "They are not
bigger than I ; there was even one which was much smaller. Why
were they allowed to keep all their branches? Where are they being
taken to?"

"We know! we know!" twittered the sparrows. "We have looked
in at the windows down in the town ! We know where they are going
to! Ah! they are going to the greatest glory and splendor one can think
of. We have looked in at the windows and seen that they are placed in
the middle of the warm room and decorated with most beautiful things —
gilt apples, honey-cakes, toys, and many hundreds of candles."

" And then?" asked the pine-tree, trembling in all its branches. "And
then? What happens then ?"

"Well, we have n't seen anything else. It was really wonderful!"

"I wonder if I came into existence to have such a glorious career?"
cried the pine-tree in exultation. "That would be even better than going
across the ocean. How painful this longing is ! If only it were
Christmas! Now I am tall and have big branches like those which
were taken away last year. Oh, how I wish that I was already in the
cart, that I was in the warm parlor with all that glory and splendor
around me ! And then? Well, then something still better must follow,
something still more glorious. But what? Oh, how I suffer! How I am
longing! I do not know myself what has taken possession of me."

" Rejoice in us," said the air and the sunshine; "rejoice in your fresh
youth in the open ! "

But the tree did not at all rejoice. It grew and grew ; green, dark
green, it stood there winter and summer; people who saw it said:
"There 's a tine tree! " And at Christmas-time it was the first to be felled.
The ax cut deeply into its marrow ; the tree fell to the ground with a
sigh; it felt a pain, a faintness ; it was unable to think of any happiness;
it was sad at parting from its home, from the spot where it had sprung
up ; it knew it would never again see the dear old comrades, the little
bushes and the flowers round about, perhaps not even the birds. To take
leave of all this was not at all pleasant. The tree came to itself only
when it was being unloaded in the yard and heard a man sav : "That 's a
beauty! That 's the one we '11 use!"

Two grandly dressed servants then came and carried the pine-tree into
a large, beautiful room. On the walls around hung portraits, and near the
great stove stood Chinese vases with lions on the lids. There were
rocking-chairs, silken sofas, large tables covered with picture-books and
toys, — -many hundred dollars' worth, — at least that's what the children
said. And the tree was placed in a great tub filled with sand, but nobody
could see it was a tub, for it was covered up with some green cloth and
was standing on a large, brightly colored carpet. How the tree trembled !
What was going to take place ? Both the servants and the ladies of the
house were busy decorating it. On the branches they hung little nets cut

196 THE PINE-TREE

out of colored paper; each net they filled with sweets; gilt apples and
walnuts hung from it as if they had grown there, and over a hundred red,
blue, and white little candles were fastened to the branches. Dolls, which
looked exactly like live beings — the tree had never seen any before —
hung suspended from the green branches, and at the very top of the tree
was fixed a great star of tinsel gold; it was splendid, it was quite mag-
nificent.

"To-night," they all said; "to-night it will look glorious'"

"Oh," thought the tree, "I wish it were evening ! It only the
candles could be lighted soon ! And what will happen then r Will the
trees from the forest come and look at mep Will the sparrows fiy past
the window? I wonder if I shall grt)\v fast here and remain decorated
winter and summer."

Yes, it seems to know all about it ; but it sufl^ered from a terrible bark-
ache from all the longing, and barkache is just as bad for a tree as a
backache is to us.

The candles were now lighted. What jov, \\hat splendor' the tree
trembled in all its branches at the sight ot it, so that one of the candles set
fire to a branch and singed it badly.

"Goodness gracious!" cried the young ladies, and set to \\'ork in all
haste to put out the fire.

The tree did not even dare to tremble. Oh, it was terrible! It was
so afraid of losing any of its finery that it was quite beside itself in all
this splendor, when suddenly the folding doors were opened and a crowd
of children rushed into the room as if they were going to upset the tree;
the older people followed in a more dignified manner. The little ones
stood quite silent, but only for a moment, then they shouted again till the
room rang; they danced round the tree, and one present after another was
plucked from it.

"What are they dcnng r " thought the tree. "What 's going to
happen?" The candles were begiiniing to burn down to the branches,
and were then put out one after the other. The children were now
allowed to strip it ; they rushed at it so that all its branches creaked, and
had it not been fastened to the ceiling by the top and the golden star, it
would have been overturned.

The children danced round the room w itli their pretty toys ; -nobody
looked at the tree except the old nurse who was looking about between
the branches, but it was only to see if a fig or an apple had been forgotten.

"A story! a story!" cried the children, and dragged a fat little man
toward the tree. He sat down just under it. " For then we shall be in the
greenwood," he said, "and it may please the tree to listen to the story;
but I will tell you only one story. Will you have the one about Ivede-
Avede, or that one about Lumpy-Dumpy, who fell dou n the stairs, but
after all came on the throne and married the princess?"

THE FOLDING DOORS WERE OPENED AND A CROWD OF CHILDREN RUSHED INTO THE ROOM :
THE OLDER PEOPLE FOLLOWED IN A MORE DIGNIFIED MANNER.

THE PIXE-TREE 199

" Ivede-Avede ! " cried some, "Lumpy-Dumpy ! " cried others. There
was such a crying and shouting, only the pine-tree remained quite silent
and thought: "Am I not to join in it, not do anything at all-" It had
already been in it and had done all it should do.

And the man told them about Lumpv-Dumpv, who tell down the
stairs, and after all came on the throne and married the princess. " The
princess!" The children clapped their hands and cried: " Cio on! go
on!" Thev wanted to hear "Ivede-Avede" also, but they got onlv
" Lumpy-Dumpv." The pine-tree stood quite silent and thoughtful : the
birds in the forest had never told such stories. " Lumpv-Dumpy fell down
the stairs and got the princess after all. Ah, well ! that 's the way of the
world," thought the pine-tree, believing it was all true because it was such
a nice old man who had told it. "Ah, well, who knows ! perhaps I may
fall down the stairs too and marrs' a princess." And it looked forward
with pleasure to being decorated again next day with lights and tovs, with
gold and fruits.

"To-morrow I shall not tremble," it thought. " I "11 enjoy myself
thoroughly in the midst of all my glorv. To-morrow I shall again hear the
story about Limipy-Dumpy and perhaps the one about Ivede-Avede."

And the tree remained quiet and thoughtful the whole night.

In the morning the man-servant and the chambermaid came into the
room.

"Now the fun is going to begin again ! " thought the tree; but they
dragged it out of the room, up the stairs and into the garret, and there
they put it away in a dark corner where the daylight could not reach.
"What is the meaning of this .^' thought the tree ; " I wonder what I am
going to do here, and what I shall hear?" And it leaned against the wall
and stood thinking and thinking. It had plenty of time to do so, for
days and nights passed and nobodv came near it, and when somebody at
last came it was only to put some big boxes away in the corner. The tree
stood quite hidden and one would think it had been quite forgotten.

"Now it 's winter outside !" thought the tree. "The ground is hard
and covered with snow and they cannot plant me; therefore I suppose I
must stand here in the shelter till the spring. How thoughttul ! How
kind people are! If it were only not so dark here and so terribly lonely !
Not even a little hare ! It was so jolly out there in the forest, when the
snow was on the ground, and the hare was running about; ves, even when
he jumped over me, but I did not like it at the time. I'p here it is ter-
ribly lonely! "

"Squeak, squeak ! " said a tiny mouse just then, and crept out of its hole:
and then came another. They sniffed at the pine-tree and crept up
among its branches.

" It is terribly cold ! " said the little mice. "Otherwise it 's ver\- nice
here! Don't you think so, vou old pine-tree?"

200 THE PINE-TREE

"I am not at all old!" said the pine-tree; "there are manvmuch older
than I."

"Where do vou come from?" asked the mice, "and what do vou
know?" They were so dreadhillv inquisitive. "Tell us about the pretti-
est spot on earth. Have you been there ? Have you been in the larder,
where there are cheeses on the shelves and hams hanging from the ceiling,
where one can dance on tallow candles, and where one goes in thin and
comes out fat?"

"I don't know anything about that," said the tree; "but I know the
forest, where the sun shines and where the birds sing." And then it told
them everything from its youth onward, and the little mice had never
heard anything like it before ; they listened attentively and said :

" Dear, dear ! How much you must have seen ! How happy you must
have been ! "

"I?" said the pine-tree, and thought over what it had been telling
them. "Well, they were very jolly times, after all ! " And then it went on
to tell them about Christmas Eve, when it was decorated with cakes and
candles.

"Ah ! " said the little mice, " how happy you must have been, you old
pine-tree ! "

" I am not at all o]d," said the tree; " it is only this winter that I came
from the forest. I am in my full prime, I am only a little stunted in my
growth."

" How delightfully you do tell stories! " said the little mice, and the
next night they came with four other little mice, to hear the tree tell
stories; and the more it went on telling the more distinctly it remembered
everything, and it thought to itself: "They were very jolly times, after
all ! But they may come again, they may come again ! Lumpy-Dumpy fell
down the stairs and still got the princess ; perhaps I can get a princess
too." And the pine-tree thought of a pretty little birch-tree which
grew out in the forest and which to the pine-tree was as good as a real
princess.

"Who is Lumpy-Dumpy?" asked the little mice. And then the
pine-tree told them the whole story ; it remembered every single word of
it, and the little mice were so delighted with it that they were ready to
jump to the top of the tree. The following night there came a great
many more mice and on the Sunday even two rats; but they said the story
was not funny, and the little mice were sorry to hear this, for now they
also thought less of it.

" Do you know only that one story ?" asked the rats.

"Only that one," answered the tree. "I heard it on the happiest
evening of my life, but I did not then know how happy I was."

" It 's a very poor story ! Don't you know any one with bacon and
tallow candles in it — any story trom the larders ? "

THE PINE-TREE 201

"No," said the tree.

" Ah, well, thanks all the same," answered the rats, and went off to
their holes.

The little mice also disappeared at last, and the tree sighed: "It was
rather pleasant to have the tiny little mice sitting round me and listening
to what I told them ! Now that 's all over as well ! hut I shall take care to
enjoy myself when I am brought out again !"

But when did that happen ? Well, early one morning some people
came and rummaged about in the garret ; the boxes were moved about and
the tree was dragged out of its corner and thrown somewhat roughly
on the rtoor, but one of the men dragged it toward the staircase where
there was bright sunshine.

"Now life is beginning again ! " thought the tree as it felt the fresh
air and the first sunbeam — and then it found itself in the yard. Every-
thing happened so quickly that the tree forgot to take a look at itself.
There was so much to see all round. The yard adjoined the garden,
where everything was in full bloom; the roses hung so fresh and fragrant
over the little palings ; the linden-trees were in blossom, and the swallows
flew about and said: " Quirre-virre-vit, my husband 's come home!" but
it was not the pine-tree they meant.

"Now I shall enjoy life!" it shouted joyously, spreading its branches
far out; alas! they were all withered and yellow, and it was lying in a
corner amongst weeds and nettles. The tinsel star was still fixed on the
top and glittered in the sunshine.

Two of the merry children who had danced round the tree at
Christmas and been so fond of it were playing in the yard. The smallest
rushed at it and tore off the golden star.

" Just look what is still sticking to the ugly old Christmas-tree ! " he
said, and began trampling upon the branches till they crackled under his
feet.

And the tree looked at all the splendor and freshness of the Howers in
the garden and then at itself, and wished it had remained in its dark
corner in the garret. It thought of its bright young days in the forest, of
the merry Christmas Eve, and of the little mice which had listened so
pleased to the story about Lumpy-Dumpy.

" It 's all over! " said the poor tree. " If I had onlv enjoyed myself
when I had the chance ! It 's all over ! All over ! "

And the servant man came and chopped the tree into small pieces ; it
made quite a large bundle. It blazed up brightly under the large copper
kettle, and sighed so deeply that every sigh was like the report of a small
gun, and the children who were at play came in and seated themselves
in front of the fire, looked at it and shouted, "Pop ! pop!" But at each
report, which was really a deep sigh, the tree was thinking of a summer
day in the forest, or a winter night out there while the stars were shining.

202

THE PINE-TREE

It thought of Christmas Eve and Lumpy-Dumpy, the only story it had
heard and knew how to tell — and so the tree was burned to ashes.

The boys were playing in the yard, and the youngest was wearing the
tinsel star on his breast, which the tree had worn on the happiest evening
of its existence. Now all that had come to an end, and so had the tree ;
and the story as well came to an end, to an end — and so do all stories !

THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN," SAID
THE WOMAN FROM THE MARSH

'THE \VlI.L-(> -I HK-W ISrS AKl IN

1 AKK 1 AkI UK \ nt K>l LVES I

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THEWILL-O^-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN," SAID
THE WOMAN FROM THE MARSH

THERE was a man who cMice knew very many new fairy tales, hut
now they had slipped from his memory, he said. The fairy tales
which used to come of themselves and visit him. did not come any
more and knock at his door, and why did they not come? True enough,
the man had not been thinking of them for years and days, and had not
been expecting they would come and knock again ; but most probably
they had not been near him at all, for abroad there was war, and in his
country the sorrow and distress which war carries with it.

The storks and the swallows came back from their long journey; they
had not been thinking of any danger, but when they arrived they found
their nests were burned, the dwellings of men and the wicket-gates out of
order or even gone, the horses of the enemy trampling over the old
graves. They were hard and gloomy times; but even they must come to
an end.

And now they had come to an end, the people said ; still the fairy
tales did not knock at the door or give any sign of themselves.

"They are dead and gone, I suppose, with all the others," said
the man.

But fairy tales never die.

And more than a year passed and he began to long sorely after them.

" I wonder if the fairy tales will ever come back and knock at my

205

206 "THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN

door?" And he remembered so vividly in how many forms they had
come to him, sometimes young and fair, like the spring itself, as a beautiful
young maiden with a wreath of woodruff in her hair and a branch of the
beech in her hand, while her eyes shone like deep forest lakes in the
bright sunlight; at other times they had come in the shape of a peddler
who had opened his box of wares and let the silken ribbons fly about with
their verses and inscriptions of old memories; but most delightful of all,
however, were the occasions when they came as "old Granny," with
silver-white hair and eyes so large and clear, who could tell so well about
the times of old, long before the princesses spun yarn upon golden spindles,
about the times when dragons and serpents lay outside the maidens' bowers
and kept guard. She would then tell her stories so vividly that all who
listened to her saw black spots dancing before their eyes, the tloor became
black with human blood ; it was terrible to behold and listen to, and yet
so fascinating, for it was such a long time since it had all happened.

"Will she ever knock at my door again?" said the man, and stared at
the door till black spots appeared before his eyes and on the floor ; he
did not know if it was blood or the black crape from the dark, gloomy
days gone by.

And as he sat there the thought struck him that the fairv tales
might have hidden themselves somewhere, like the princess in the very
old fairy tales, and were waiting to be discovered ; if she were found,
she would arise and shine with renewed splendor, more glorious than
ever.

"Who knows? Perhaps she has hidden herself among the straw that
was thrown near the brink of the well. Take care! Be careful ! Perhaps
she has hidden herself inside a dried flower which has been put inside one
of the large books on the shelf"

And the man went and opened one of the newest books, full of
information and knowledge, but no flowers lay there. There one could
read about Holger Danske; and the man read that the story was invented
and composed by a monk in France, that it was a romance which had
been "translated and printed in the Danish language," that Holger Danske
had never existed, and could consequently never come back again, as we
have so long been singing and would so gladly believe. As with William
Tell, so with Holger Danske — they were only myths, which could not be
depended upon ; and all this was set forth in the book with great wisdom.

"Well, I shall believe what I believe," said the man; "no plantain
grows where no foot has trodden."

And he shut the book, put it back on the shelf, and went over to the
fresh flowers in the window ; perhaps the fairy tales had hidden them-
selves inside the red tulips with the golden-yellow edges, or in the fragrant
rose, or in the highly colored camellia. There was sunlight among the
leaves, but no fairy tales.

SAID THE WOMAN FROM THE MARSH 207

The flowers which stood here in the time of sorrow were far more
beautiful ; but they were cut ofl, every one of them, and made into
wreaths and placed in the coffins, and over them the flag was spread.

Perhaps the fairy tales were buried with those flowers ! But the
flowers must have known of it, and the coffin would have been aware of it,
the soil around it would have noticed it, every little blade of grass that
shot forth would have told of it. P"or fairy tales never die!

" Perhaps they have been here and knocked at my door, but who
had ears or eyes for them in those times?" People looked gloomily,
sadly, and almost angrily at the spring sunshine, at the twittering birds,
and all the budding foliage; yes, even the tongue could no longer sing the
old, popular, ever-fresh melodies — they were consigned to oblivion with
so many other things that were dear to our hearts. The fairy tales may
have been here and knocked, but no one has heard them; they were not
welcomed, and so they have gone away.

" I will set out to find them. Out into the country. Out into the
woods by the open shore."

Out in the country lies an (.ild manor-house with red walls, pointed
gables, and with a flag waving from the tower. The nightingale is
singing under the delicately fringed beech leaves, while he looks at the
blossoming apple-trees and believes that they are bearing roses. Here in
the summer sun the bees are busily fluttering about, and swarming and
humming round their queen.

The autumn storms have much to tell about the wild chase, about the
generations of mankind, and the leaves of the forest which sweep over the
land. At Christmas time the wild swans sing from the open lake, while
in the old manor-house the folks are gathering round the fireside to listen
to songs and legends.

Down in the old part of the garden, where the great avenue of wild
chestnut-trees allures one with its twilight, the man who was looking for
the fairy tales was walking about. Here the wind had some time ago
whispered into his ears the story of " Valdemar Daa and his Daughters."
Here the dryad in the tree, the mother of fairy tales, had herself told him
"The Last Dream of the Old Oak-Tree." Here in grandmother's time
there were only clipped hedges; now only ferns and nettles grow there,
spreading themselves over scattered fragments of old statues of stone ; moss
was growing in their eyes, but they could see just as well as before, while
the man who was in search of the foiry tales could not ; he could not see
the fairy tales. Where were they ?

Hundreds of crows flew over his head and the old trees, screaming
" Kra ! Kra!"

And he went from the garden across the moat into the alder-grove,
where there was a little six-sided cottage with poultry- and duck-yards. In
the middle of the room sat the old woman who looked after everything

208 "THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN"

and knew exactly when each egg was laid, and knew every chicken that
came out of the eggs. But she was not the fairy tales which the man was
in search of; that she could prove by her certificate of Christian baptism
and of vaccination, both of which were lying in her chest of drawers.

Some distance off, though not far from the house, is a hill with red
hawthorn and laburnum ; there lies an old tombstone, which was brought
there many years ago from the churchyard in the town, in memory of one
of the honorable councilors of the town, his wife, and his five daughters,
all with folded hands and in ruffs, standing round him, hewed in stone.
One could look so long at these figures that they seemed to have an effect
upon one's thoughts, and these again seemed to influence the stone, so that
it began telling stories about old times; at least, that is what happened to
the man who was in search of the fairy tales. As he now came upon the
spot, he saw a living butterfly sitting right on the forehead of the coun-
cilor's effigy in stone; the butterfly flapped its wings, flew some little
distance, and settled down again close to the tombstone, as if to show
what was growing there. Four-leaved clovers grew there; there were
altogether seven of them, close to one another. If luck comes, it comes
in abundance. He gathered the clovers and put them in his pocket.
Luck is as good as ready money, but a new, delightful fairy tale would be
much better, thought the man; but he did not find it there.

The sun went down, large and red; in the meadows vapors were
rising; the woman from the marsh was brewing.

Later on in the evening the man was standing alone in his room,
looking out into the garden over the meadows, the marshes, and the
strand; the moon shone brightly, a mist was lying over the meadow,
making it look like a great lake, which it had really been at one time.
There were legends about it, and in the moonlight the legends seemed to
take shape. The man then thought of what he had been reading when
in town, that William Tell and Holger Danske had not existed; but still
they remain in the traditions of the people, just like the lake over yonder
— living evidence of the legends. Yes, Holger Danske will come back
again. As he was standing there, buried in thought, something struck
heavily against the window. Was it a bird, a bat, or an owl ? One
does n't open windows for such visitors when they knock.

The window flew open of itself, and an old woman looked right in at
the man.

"Hullo!" he exclaimed. "Who are you? How can you look
through a window on the first floor? Are you standing on a ladder?"

"You have got a four-leaved clover in your pocket," she said ; "in fact,
you have seven in all, and one of them is a six-leaved one."

"Who are you?" asked the man.

"The woman from the marsh," she said, — "the woman from the
marsh, who brews. I was busy brewing, the tap was in the barrel, but one

SAID THE WOMAN FROM THE MARSH 209

of the little imps from the marsh pulled out the tap for mischief, and I
threw it right up here against the house and it struck against the window.
Now the heer is running out of the barrel, and that won't do anybody any
good."

"But do tell me," said the man.

"Yes, yes, only wait a little," said the woman from the marsh.
"I have got something else to look after nt)w," and then she was gone.

|i,.*ii.,,.i,ii,|.j|P||Pjj|l|

THE WINDOW FLEW OPEN OF ITSELF, AND AN OLD WOMAN LOOKED RIGHT IN
AT THE MAN.

The man was just closing the window when the woman again
appeared.

"Now I am done," she said ; "but half the heer I shall have to brew
over again to-morrow, it the weather is suitable. Well, what was it you
wanted to ask about r I came back again, because I always keep my word,
and you have in your pocket seven four-leaved clovers, one of which is a
six-leaved one ; that commands respect ; it is a decoration which grows by
the roadside, but which cannot be found by every one. What is it you
want to ask about? Don't stand there like a silly dolt. I must be off
soon, to look after my tap and my barrel."

210 "THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN"

And the man asked after the fairy tales — whether the woman from
the marsh had seen them on her way.

"By the big brew!" said the woman, "have you not had en(>ugh of
fairy tales? I thought most people had had enough of them. There are
other things to be looked after, and other things to mind. Even children
have got beyond them. Give the little boys a cigar and the little girls a
new crinoline — they care much more for these. Listen to fairy tales!
No, indeed, there are other things to be looked after, much more
important things to be done!"

"What do you mean by that?" asked the man. "And what do vou
know about the world? You see only frogs and will-o'-the-wisps."

"You had better beware of the will-o'-the-wisps," said the woman;
"they are out. They have been let loose. Let's talk about them!
Come and see me in the marsh, where I am wanted ; there I '11 tell you
all about it, but make haste, while your seven four-leaved clovers, with
the six-leaved one, are fresh, and while the moon still stands high."

And away went the woman from the marsh.

The clock struck twelve in the clock-tower; before it struck a quarter
past the man was down in the yard, and had passed through the garden
and stood in the meadow. The mist had disappeared, and the woman
from the marsh had stopped brewing.

"You 've been a long time coming,"
marsh. "Witches get on faster than men,
witch."

"What have you got to tell me now?" ;
thing about the fairv tales?"

"Can you never get firther than to ask about them?" said the
woman.

"Then is it about the poelrv of the future that you can tell mc.-"
asked the man.

"Don't begin with any of your grand phrases," said the woman,
"and I '11 be sure to answer you. You think only of poetry, — you ask
only about fairy tales, as if they were the mistress of everything. She is
the oldest, but she is generally taken for the youngest. I know her well
enough ! I have also been young, and that 's no child's complaint. I
was once a pretty elfin maid, and have danced with the others in the
moonlight. I have listened to the nightingale and have walked in the
woods, and met the fairy-tale maiden who was always gadding about.
Sometimes she would take up her quarters for the night in a half-blown
tulip, or in a globe-flower. At other times she would steal into the
church and wrap herself up in the black crape which hung round the
candles on the altar."

" ^'ou seem to be well informed," said the man.

"Weil, I should say I know as much as you!" said the woman from

said
and

the
I am

woman
glad I

frc
was

)m the
born a

isked

the man. "

Is i

t some-

SAID THE WOMAN FROM THE MARSH 21:

the marsh. "Fairy tales and poetry — well, they are Hke two yards of
the same piece ot stuff; they may go and bury themselves where they
like! All their ideas and talk can be brewed over again and be had
much better and cheaper. You shall have them from me for nothing. I
have a whole cupboard full of poetry in bottles. It is the essence, the best
part of it; both the sweet and the bitter herb. I keep everything that
people want of poetry in bottles, so that I can put a little on my hand-
kerchief on Sundays to smell."

" Vou speak of very wonderful things," said the man. "Have you
poetry in bottles?"

"More than you can stand," said the woman. ' '^^Hl know, I sup-
pose, the story of 'The Ciirl Who Trod on the Loaf so that She Might
not Dirty Her New Shoes'.? It is both written and printed."

"I have told it myself," said the man.

"Well, then you must know it," said the woman; "and you must
know that the little girl sank straight into the ground to the woman from
the marsh, just as the devil's great-grandmother came on a visit to see the
brewery. She saw the girl as she was sinking, and asked if she might
have her to put on a pedestal, in remembrance of the visit. She got her,
and I got a present which is of no use to me — a medicine-chest, a whole
cupboard tilled with poetry in bottles. Great-grandmother told me where
the cupboard should stand, and there it is still standing. Just look! You
have your seven four-leaved clovers in your pocket, of which one is a six-
leaved one, so you wilj be sure to see it."

And sure enough, in the middle of the marsh was lying something
like the stump of a big alder-tree; it was great-grandmother's cupboard.
It was open to the woman from the marsh and to everybody from all
countries, and at all times, she said, if they only knew where the cupboard
was standing. It could be opened at the front and at the back, and at
every side and all the corners,-^a most ingenious piece ofwork, — and yet
it only looked like the stump of an old alder-tree. The poets of all
countries, especially of our own country, were re-manufactured here.
Their minds were elaborated, criticized, renovated, concentrated, and then
put into bottles. With great instinct, as it is called when you do not want
to say genius, great-grandmother had seized upon that in nature which
seemed to partake of the flavor of this or of that poet, had put a little
devilry to it, and then she had his poetry in bottles for all time to come.

" Let me have a look," said the man.

"Yes, but there are more important things to listen to," said the
woman from the marsh.

"But now we are at the cupboard," said the man, and looked into
it. " Here are bottles of all sizes. What is there in this one? And in
this?"

"This is what they call May-dew," said the woman. "I have not

212 "THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN"

tried it, but I know that if you pour only a small drop of it on the floor,
you have at once before you a beautiful woodland lake, with water-lilies,
flowering rushes, and wild mint. You need pour only two drops upon an
old exercise-book, even on those from the lowest class in the school, and
the book becomes a sentimental comedy which is good enough to be
performed, and over which people would be sure to tall asleep, so strong is
the perfume of it. It is supposed to be out of compliment to me that the
label on the bottle bears the inscription, 'The Hrew ot the Woman from
the Marsh.'

"Here stands the bottle of 'Scandal." It looks as if there were only
dirty water in it; and it is dirty water, Init with effervescing powder of
town gossip, three ounces of falsehood, and two grains of truth, stirred
about with a birch-twig, not taken from a rod that has been in pickle or
fresh from the bleeding back of sinners; no, taken right from the broom
which has been used to sweep the gutter with.

"Here is the bottle with 'Pious Poetrv,' set to psalm tunes. Every
drop has a ring about it, like the slamming of the gates of hell, and has
been prepared from the blood and sweat of the penitent. Some sav it is
only the gall of the dove, but doves are the gentlest of creatures; they have
no gall, people say who do not know their natural history.

" Here stood the bottle of all bottles, — it took up half the cupboard, —
the bottle with 'Stories of Every-dav Life.' It was covered over both
with bladder and hogskin, for it would n't do to lose any of its strength.
Every nation could here get its own soup; it all depended on how you
turned and shifted the bottle. Here was old German blood-soup, w ith
robber-dumplings; also thin cottagers' -soup, with real court officials, who
lay like carrots at the bottom, while philosophical fat floated on the top.
There was English governess-soup, and the Prench potagc a la coq, made
from cocks' legs and sparrows' eggs, in Danish called cancan-soup ; but the
best of all the soups was Copenhagen-soup. That 's what the family said.

"Here, in a champagne-bottle, 'Tragedy' used to stand; it could go off
with grand effect, and that was necessary. 'Comedy' looked just like
fine sand to throw in people's eyes — that is to say, the refined comedy ; the
coarser was also to be found in bottle, but consisted only of play-bills of
future productions, the most attractive of which were the titles of the
pieces. There were capital titles for comedies, such as : ' Dare You Spit
on the Watchworks? ' 'One On the Jaw,' ' The Darling Ass,' and 'She
is Dead Drunk.' "

The man stood musing, but the thoughts of the woman from the marsh
went further; she wanted to put an end to it all.

"I suppose you have seen enough now of the medicine-chest," she
said, "now you know what there is in it; but there is something more
important that you ought to know, and which you don't know — the
will-o'-the-wisps are in town. That is of far greater importance than

I HAD ALL THE TWELVE NEW-BORN WILL-O -THE-WISPS IN MV LAL

"THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN" 215

poetry and fairy tales. I ought to hold my tongue about it, but this must
be the work of Providence, or fate — something which has taken possession
of me, something that sticks in my throat; it must come out. The
will-o'-the-wisps are in town. They have been let loose. You mortals
had better beware! "

"I don't understand a word of it," said the man.

"Be good enough to sit down on the cupboard," she said; "but don't
fall into it and break the bottles — you know what there is in them. I will
tell you of the great event ; it happened only yesterday, and it has happened
before. This one has still three hundred and sixty-four days to riui. You
know, of course, how many days there are in the year ? "

And the woman from the marsh began her story.

" There were grand doings out here in the marsh yesterday. There was
a children's party. A little will-o'-the-wisp was born here — in fact, there
were twelve of them born to the same family, and to them it is given to
become mortals if they choose, and to appear, act, and command as if they
were human beings. It is a great event in the marsh, and therefore all the
will-o'-the-wisps, male and female, — for there are also females amongst
them, but they are never mentioned, — were dancing like little lights all
over the marshes and meadows. I sat on the cupboard there and had
all the twelve new-born will-o'-the-wisps in my lap ; they shone like
glow-worms, and were already beginning to jump and increase in size
every minute, so that before a quarter of an hour had passed they all began
to look just as large as if they were fathers or uncles. Now it is an old
established law and privilege that when the moon stands in the sky just
as she did yesterday, and the same wind blows which blew yesterday, it is
decreed and granted to all the will-o'-the-wisps who are born in that hour
and in that minute to become mortals, and through the whole year to
exercise their power everywhere, one and all of them. The will-o'-the-
wisp may run at large all round the country and the whole world as well,
if he is not afraid of falling into the sea or being blown out in a heavy
gale. He can enter into a human being, talk to him, and make any
movement he likes. The will-o'-the-wisp can assume any form whatever,
man or woman, and can talk and act in their spirit, but according to his
own notions of extremes, so that he arrives at any result he wishes. But
in the course of the year he must know and understand how to lead three
hundred and sixty-five mortals astray, — and that he must do in grand style,
— to lead them astray from truth and righteousness; then he will rise to
the highest position a will-o'-the-wisp can attain — that of becoming fore-
runner to the devil's state chariot, with a fiery-yellow coat and the fiames
shooting out of his throat. That 's enough to make the mouths of the
common will-o'-the-wisps water !

" But there is some danger and a good deal of work to be done by
an ambitious will-o'-the-wisp who intends to play such a role. If a mortal

216 "THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN"

discovers who he is, and can blow him away, he is done for, and has to
return to the marsh; and if a will-o'-the-wisp is seized with a longing to
return to his family and abandon his mission, then he is also done for, and
can no longer burn brightly, he will soon go out and cannot be lighted
again. And if the year comes to an end and he has not by that time led
three hundred and sixty-five mortals astray from the path of truth, and
from everything that -s good and beautiful, he is condemned to take up
his abode in decayed wood and shine without being able to move, and that
is the most terrible punishment that can befall a sprightly will-o'-the-wisp.
I knew all this, and I told it all to the twelve little will-o'-the-wisps whom
I had on my lap, and they became wild with joy. I told them that the
easiest and most comfortable way was to give up all ambition and not to
think of doing anything; but the young lights would not listen to this —
they already saw themselves arrayed in the fierv-vellow coats, with the
flames shooting out of their throats.

" 'Remain with us!' said some ot the elder ones.

'"Go and play your tricks on mankind,' said the others. 'They dry
up our meadows; thev have invented a system of drainage. What will
become of our descendants r '

"'We want to shine, to dazzle ! ' said the new-born will-o'-the-wisps;,
and so the matter was settled.

"And now they gave a hall which was to last only a minute; it could
not very well be less. The elfin maidens whirled round three times with
all the others, so that they should not be thought proud, for they generally
prefer to dance by themselves. Then the christening presents were
distributed — playing at 'ducks and drakes' as it was called. Presents
were thrown about like pebbles across the marsh lake. The elfin maidens
gave the end of their veils. ' Take it,' they said, ' and then you will
know all the higher dances, the most difficult figures and turns ; when you
are in a dilemma you will know how to deport yourself correctly, and can
show yourself in the very best society.' The night raven taught each ot
the young will-o'-the-wisps to say : ' Bravo, bravo, bravo ! ' and to say
it at the right moment, and that is a great gift which brings its own
reward. The owl and the stork had also something to say, but it was not
worth talking about, they said, and so we shall not mention it. ' King
Waldemar's wild chase ' was just flying past across the marsh, and when
the grand company heard of the goings on they sent as a present a couple
of fine dogs which could run as fast as the wind, and could easily carry
from one to three of the will-o'-the-wisps. Two old witches, who got
their living bv riding, were also present at the feast ; they taught the young
will-o'-the-wisps the trick of slipping in through the keyholes; when you
know this it is the same as if all doors are open to you. They offered to
take the young will-o'-the-wisps to town, which they knew well. They

SAID THE WOMAN FROM THE MARSH 217

usually rode through the air on their own long black hair, in which they
had made 4 knot in order to sit firmly, but now they sat astride the dogs
from the wild chase, and took in their laps the young will-o'-the-wisps
which were going to town to beguile and lead mortals astray. Whist !
Off they went ! All this happened last night. Now the will-o'-the-wisps
are in town, now thev have begun, but how and in what way ? Ay !
Can you tell me that .? I have a weather prophet in my big toe, which
always has something to tell me."

"Why, it is a regular fairy tale !" said the man.

"Yes, but it is only the beginning of one," said the woman. "Can
you tell me how the will-o'-the-wisps are now behaving and disporting
themselves, and what shape they have assumed to lead mortals astray ? "

"I think," said the man, "that a whole romance might be written
about the will-o'-the-wisps — a romance in twelve volumes, one about each
will-o'-the-wisp; or perhaps a popular drama would be still better."

" "\'ou ought to write it," said the woman, "or, rather, leave it
alone."

" Yes, that is more pleasant and comfortable," said the man ; "and then
one does not run the risk of being sat upon by the papers, which is often
as unpleasant for us as for the will-o'-the-wisp to lie in decayed wood,
shining and not daring to say a word."

" It is all the same to me," said the woman; "but rather let the others
write — those who can write, and those who cannot. I will give them an
old tap from my barrel, which will open the cupboard with the bottles ot
poetry ; in these they may find whatever they are short of. But you,
my good man, seem to have inked your fingers quite sufficiently and to
have arrived at that time of life and maturity when you should not be running
after fairy tales every year. There are now far more important things to
be done. You understand, of course, that there is mischief brewing?"

"The will-o'-the-wisps are in town," said the man. "I have heard
it and I understand it, but what do you want me to do? I should get
an overhauling if I said to people: 'Look, there goes a will-o'-the-wisp in
a respectable coat ! ' "

"They also go about in petticoats," said the woman. "The will-o'-
the-wisp can assume all kinds of shapes and appear in all sorts of places.
He goes to church, but not for religious reasons; perhaps he has taken up
his quarters in the parson. He speaks on election days, not for the sake
of the state or the country, but for his own sake; he is an artist, both in
the color-pot and in the theatrical pot, but if he comes into power, there
will be an end to it. I go on talking and talking, but I must say and
speak out what is sticking in my throat, even to the detriment of my own
family, though I am supposed to be the woman who is to save mankind.
It is not of my own free will, or for the sake of the medal, I can assure

218 "THE WILL-O'-THE-WISPS ARE IN TOWN

you. I do the maddest thing I can : I tell it to a poet and then the whole
town soon gets to know it."

"The town will not take it to heart," said the man. "It will not
affect a single person. They will believe that I am telling them a fairy tale
when I tell them with the most serious face: 'The will-o'-the-wisps are
in town, as the woman from the marsh says. Take care of yourselves !' "

THE UGLY DUCKLING

A DUCK WAS SllllSr. ON HKK M'.sl K) HAH K 1 I J ILH DUCKLINGS.

THE UGLY DUCKLING

IT was beautitul out in the countrv, tor it was summer-time. The corn
was yellow, the oats green ; the hay had been made up into ricks down
in the green meadows, where the stork was walking about on his long
red legs and talking away in Egyptian, tor that was the language he had
learned from his mother. Round about the corn-fields and meadows were
large woods, and in the middle of the woods were deep lakes. Oh, it was
indeed beautitul out in the country !

In the midst ot the sunny landscape lav an old manor-house with a
deep moat around it, and between the wall and the water grew large bur-
docks, which had attained such a height that little children could stand
upright under the tallest of them. It was just as wild there as in the depths
of the wood. A duck was sitting on her nest to hatch her little ducklings,
but she was almost getting tired oi it, tor it took such a IcMig time, and she

222 THE UGLY DUCKLING

seldom received any visitors. The other ducks preferred swimming about
in the moat to climbing up and sitting under a burdock gabbling to her.

At last one egg after another began to crack, and "Peep I peep ! " said
the little ducklings; all the yolks had become living creatures and were
popping out their heads.

" Quack ! quack ! " said the duck, and away they rushed as fast as they
could, looking about them on all sides under the green leaves ; their
mother let them look around as much as they liked, for green is good for
the eyes.

" How big the world is ! " said all the young ones, for they had now
more space to move about in than when they lay in the egg.

" Do you think this is the whole world ?" said the mother. " It stretches
far awav on the other side of the garden, right up to the parson's field,
though I have never been there. I hope you are all here," she said, as
she stood up. " No, I have n't got you all ; the biggest egg is still
there. How long is this going to last? I am getting tired ot it." And
so she settled down again.

"Well, how are vou getting on ?" said an old duck, wht) came to pay
a visit.

"This egg takes such a long time ! " said the duck on the nest ; " it
won't break ! But now you must look at the others. They are the finest
ducklings I have seen. They are all like their father, the wretch ! He
never comes to see me."

"Let me see the egg that won't break," said the old duck. " ^'ou '11
find it is a turkey's egg. That was the way I was once deceived, and I
had a lot of worry and anxiety with those youngsters, for they are afraid
of the water. I may tell you, I could not get them to take to it.
I quacked and snapped, but it was all of no use. Let me see the egg ;
yes, it's a turkey egg! Leave it, and teach your other children to
swim."

"I'll sit on it just a little longer," said the duck. "I have now
been sitting on it so long that 1 may as well go on tor some days
longer."

"Just as you like," said the old duck, and away she went.

At last the large egg broke. " Peep ! peep ! " said the youngster
as he rolled out of the shell ; he was very big and ugly. The duck
looked at him: "You are a terribly big duckling, to be sure," she said;
"none o( the others look like you. I wonder if it is a young turkey,
after all. Well, we shall soon find that out. Into the water he shall
go, even if I have to push him in myself"

The next day the weather was most beautiful; the sun was shining
upon all the green burdocks. The mother of the ducklings went down to
the moat with all her little ones. Splash! and into the water she jumped.
"Quack, quack!" she called out, and in the ducklings jumped, one after

MAKE HASIE AXD BOW YOUR HEADS TO THE OLD DUCK. SHE IS THE OLDEST OF THEM
ALL HERE. SHE IS OF SPANISH BLOOD !"

THE UGLY DUCKLING

225

igJ

the other. The water closed over their heads, but the next moment they
came up again and were swimming about most beautifully, their legs
going of themselves. They were all in the water; even the ugly gray
youngster was swimming about with them.

"No, he is not a turkey," she said; "look how well he uses his legs,
and how erect he carries himself He is one of my own ducklings. He
is not so ugly, after all, when vou look at him properly. Quack, quack !
Come along with me and I will take you all out into the world and
present you in the duck-yard; but keep close to me, so that no one shall
tread upon you, and beware of the cat ! "

"And then they came into the duck-V'^rd, where there was a terrible
noise; two families were tiuhtins); over the head of an eel, which the cat
got, after all.

"Ah, just look!
that 's the way of
the world," said the
mother, licking her
beak, for she would
have liked to have
the eel's head herself

" Now use your
legs," she said; "just
try and make haste
and bow your heads
to the old duck
yonder. She is the
grandest of them all
here. She is of Span-
ish blood; that is
why she is so fat, and you see she has a red rag round her leg. That 's
something particularly fine and the greatest distinction that any duck can
get; it means that they don't want to lose her. Be quick! don't turn in
your toes! A well-bred duckling places his legs well apart from each
other, just like your father and mother. Now then. Just like this. Now
bow with your neck and say. Quack ! "

And this they did; but the other ducks round about looked at them
and said quite loudly : " Hem ! Now we shall have to put up with that
riff-raff as well. Just as if there were not enough of us already : and, fie !
what an ugly duckling! We sha'n't stand him!" And a duck fiew
right at him and bit him in the neck.

"Leave him alone," said rhe mother; "he won't hurt anybody."

"No, but he is too big, and is so different from the others," said the
duck who had bitten the duckling; "and therefore he must be pecked."

"These are pretty children of yours," said the old duck with the rag

'E£P, PEEP!

YOUNGSTER AS HE ROLLED OUT
IHE SHELL.

226

THE UGLY DUCKLING

round her leg; "all of them are pretty, except that one; he has not
turned out a success. I wish you would try again."

"That can't be done, vour grace," said the mother of the duckling.
" He is not pretty, but he is very good-natured, and swims as beautifully

[HINOS GOT WORSE AND

AND THE POOR DUCKLING WAS CHASED AND BITTEN
BY THEM ALL.

as any of the others, and even a little better, I venture to say. I think he
will grew pretty, or in time he may grow smaller. He has been lying
too long in the egg, and that 's why he has n't got a proper figure." And
she nipped him in the neck, and smartened up his downy coat a bit with
her beak. "Besides, he is a drake," she said; "and so it does n't matter
much. I think he '11 be a strong bird, and that he '11 manage to get on
in the world."

"The other ducklings are very nice," .said the old duck; "now just
make yourselves at home, and if you find an eel's head, you may bring
it to me."

And so they made themselves quite at hiime.

But the poor duckling who had come out of his shell last of all and
looked so ugly was bitten, pushed, and jeered at both by the ducks and
the fowls. "He is too big," they all said; and the turkey-cock, who was
born with spurs and therefore believed he was an emperor, pufi^ed himself
out like a vessel in full sail, went straight for him, and began gobbling till
he grew quite red in the face. The poor duckling did not know which
way to turn or go; he felt very miserable becau.se he was so ugly and was
the laughing-stock of the whole duck-yard.

In this way the first day passed, and afterward things got worse and

THE UGLY DUCKLING

227

worse. The poor duckling was chased by them all. Even his brothers
and sisters behaved badly to him, and were always saying: "If the cat
would only catch you, you ugly fright ! " And the mother wished him far
away, while the ducks snapped at him, and the fowls pecked at him, and
the girl who fed the poultry kicked him with her foot.

So he ran away and Hew t)ver the hedge. The little birds among the
bushes riew up in great fright. "That 's because I am so ugly," thought
the duckling, and shut his eyes; but he ran and ran till he came out on the
great marsh where the wild ducks lived. Here he remained the whole
night, he was so very tired and miserable.

In the morning the wild ducks dew up and then saw their new
comrade. "Who are you?" they asked. The duckling turned round in
all directions, and bowed to them the best he could.

"You are terribly ugly," said the wild ducks, "but that is all the same
to us, so long as you do not marry into our family. "

Poor thing, he was not likely to think of getting married ! If he
could only be allowed to lie among the rushes and drink a little of the
marsh water !

There he remained for two whole days; then there came two wild
geese, or, rather, wild ganders, for they were two male birds. It could not
have been long since they came
out of the egg, and that 's why
they were so frisky.

"Just listen, comrade," said
they. " You are so ugly that
we are almost inclined to like
you. Will you come along
with us and be a bird of pas-
sage? Close by, in another
marsh, there are some sweet,
darling wild geese, all of them
spinsters, who can say, ' Quack ! '
You may be able to make your
fortune there, ugly as you are."

" Pop ! pop ! " was heard just
above them at this moment, and
both the wild ganders fell down
dead among the rushes, and col-
ored the water red. " Pop !
pop ! " was heard again, and
whole docks of wild geese flew
up from the rushes and then there

were more reports. A great shooting party had arrived on the spot, and
the sportsmen were lying all over the moor; some were even sitting in the

SUDDENLY
HANCI.Ni

■.RRIBLE DOG,

TONGUE
HIM.

228 THE UGLY DUCKLING

trees which stretched out their branches far over the rushes. The bkie
smoke Hoated in the air like clouds between the dark trees, and extended
far over the water; the dogs bounded right into the mud, splash, splash!
Rushes and reeds swayed to and fro in all directions; the poor duckling
was in a terrible fright ; he turned his head to put it under his wing, when
suddenly a terrible big dog, with his tongue hanging far out of his mouth
and his eyes glaring wildly, stood right in front of him ; he thrust his open
jaws right against the duckling, showing his sharp teeth, when, splash ! oft
he went without touching him.

"Thank Heaven," said the duckling, "1 am so ugly that even the dog
does not care to touch me."

And so he lay quite still, while the shots were whistling through the
rushes and report after report went off.

It was late in the day before everything became quiet, but the poor
youngster did not as yet venture to move; he still waited tor some hours
before he looked around him, and then he hurried off from the moor as
fast as he could. He ran across fields and meadows in the face of such a
wind that he had great difficulty in getting on.

Toward evening he came to a poor little farm-house; it was in such a
miserable state that it did not know to what side it would tumble down,
and therefore it remained standing. The wind blew so hard against the
duckling that he was obliged to sit down to keep up against it, but it grew
worse and worse. He then noticed that one of the hinges of the door had
given way, and that in consequence the door hung in such a slanting
position that he was able to slip through the opening into the room, which
he did.

In this house lived an old woman with a cat and a hen. The cat,
which she called Sonny, could raise his back and purr, and his coat would
even bristle with sparks, but then one had to stroke him the wrong way.
The hen had quite small, short legs, and was therefore called Henny
Shortlegs; she laid good eggs, and the woman loved her as if she were her
own child.

In the morning they at once noticed the stranger duckling, and the
cat began to purr and the hen to cluck.

"What 's this?" said the woman, looking around her; but she could
not see well, and so she believed the duckling was a fat duck that had lost
her way.

" VVhy, what a rare catch!" she said; " I can now get duck's eggs, it
only it is n't a drake. I must find out."

And so the duckling was taken on trial for three weeks, but there
came no eggs. The cat was the master of the house and the hen was the
mistress, and they always used to say, " We and the world," tor they
believed that they were one half of it, and by far the better half The
duckling thought it might be possible to hold a different opinion, but the
hen would not stand that.

IN THIS HOUSE LIVED AN OLD WOMAN WITH A CAT AND A HEN. ..." WHAT'S THIS f ASKED THE
WOMAN. SHE COULD NOT SEE WELL, AND SO SHE BELIEVED THE DUCKLING WAS A FAT DUCK.

THE UGLY DUCKLING

231

^:tC-

"Can you lay egS2;sr" she asked.

"No."

"Well, you must hold your tongue, then."

And the cat asked : " Can you raise your back, or purr, or make
sparks?"

"No."

"Well, then, you must n't have any opinion when sensible folk are
talking."

And the duckling sat in a corner, very much dispirited. He began
thinking about the fresh air and the sunshine, and got such a wonderful
longing to be floating on the water that at last he could not help telling it
to the hen.

" What is the matter with
you?" she asked. "You have no-
thing to do, and that 's why you
get such silly ideas. Lay eggs, or
purr, and they will pass away."

" But it is so delightful to swim
about in the water ! " said the duck-
ling; "so delightful to get in over
your head and dive down to the
bottom."

"That must be a great pleasure,
indeed ! " said the hen. " You must
be going mad! Ask the cat — he
is the wisest creature I know — if he
likes to float on the water, or dive
under it, to say nothing of myself.
Just ask our mistress, the old woman,
who is wiser than any other person
in the world. Do you think she
would like to float about and get
the water over her head?"

" You don't understand me,"
said the duckling.

"Well, if we don't understand vou, who is likely to understand
you ? I don't suppose you think that you are wiser than the cat or the
old woman, not to speak of myself? Don't be conceited, child, and
be thankful to Heaven for all the kindness you have received. Have
you not got a warm room, and nice company, where you can learn some-

DIJCKLING HAD TO KEEP HIS LEGS CONSTANTLY
MOVING, SO THAT THE HOLE IN THE ICE
SHOULD NOT CLOSE UP.

mgi

But

are a chatterer, and it is n't pleasant to be in your

company. Believe me, I only speak for your own good. I say unpleasant
things to you, but by that you may know your true friends. Now just
set about laying eggs and learning to purr or make sparks!"

12>2 THE UGLY DUCKLING

"I think I '11 go out into the wide world," said the duckling.

"Yes, do by all means," said the hen.

And off went the duckling; he swam about on the water and he dived,
but he was shunned by all other creatures on account of his ugliness.

Autumn was now setting in ; the leaves of the forest were turning
yellow and brown, and the wind caught them up and set them dancing
and whirling about.

The air was turning cold and the clouds hung heavily laden with hail
and snow. On the fence sat the raven and cawed, "Caw! caw! " from
sheer cold. It made one shiver at the mere thought of it ; the poor
duckling was indeed in bad straits.

One evening, as the sun was setting in all its beautv, a whole Hock of
large beautitul birds came out ot the bushes; the duckling had never seen
such lovely birds before. They were dazzlinglv white, with long, curved
necks ; they were swans. They uttered quite a strange sound, and
spreading out their splendid broad wings, they dew away from those cold
regions to warmer climes, to the open lakes; they mounted higher and
higher, and a feeling of sadness came over the ugly little duckling ; he
turned round and round in the water like a wheel, stretched his neck high
up in the air after them, and uttered a cry so loud and strange that he
became frightened at it himself. Oh ! could he ever forget these beautiful,
happy birds? As soon as they were out of sight he dived straight down to
the bottom, and when he came up again he was quite beside himself He
did not know what the birds were called, or whither they were dying, but
still he loved them as he had never loved anything before; he was not at
all envious of them ; how could he think of wishing for such beauty for
himself.? He would have been quite happy if only the ducks would have
allowed him to remain with them; poor, ugly little thing!

And the winter was growing cold — oh, so cold ! The duckling had to
swim about in the water to prevent it from being frozen over; but every
night the opening in which he was swimming grew smaller and smaller.
It was freezing so hard that the ice creaked and cracked; the duckling
had to keep his legs constantly moving so that the hole should not close
up. At last he became exhausted; he lay quite still, and soon became
frozen in the ice.

Early in the morning a peasant came by and saw him; he went out on
the ice and broke it in pieces with his wooden shoe, and carried "the
duckling home to his wife. There he came to himself again.

The children wanted to play with him, but the duckling thought they
would hurt him, and rushed in a great fright straight into the milk-bowl,
so that the milk splashed all over the room. The woman screamed and
held up her hands when the duckling dew into the trough where the
butter was kept, and then into the flour-barrel and out of it again.
What a sight he was! The woman screamed and tried to hit him with

THE UGLY DUCKLING

233

the fire-tongs, and the children tumbled against one another in trying
to catch the duckling, while they laughed and screamed. It was lucky
that the door stood open ; he slipped out and rushed in among the bushes
in the new-fallen snow, and here he lay down almost insensible.

But it would be too sad to tell you about all the sufferings and misery
he had to endure during the severe winter. He was lying among the
rushes on the marsh when the sun again began to send forth its warm
larks were singin";, and evervthintr around told ot a beautiful

rays ; th
spring.

'only kill me!" said the poor creature as he bent his head down against
surface of the water.

Then all at once he lifted his wings; they beat the air more strongly
than before and carried him rapidly away, and before he knew of it he
found himself in a large garden where the apple-trees were in bloom, and
where the fragrant lilacs were hanging on their long green boughs right
down to the winding canals. Oh, how lovely everything looked in the
freshness of the spring! And out of the thicket right in front of the
duckling came three beautiful white swans; they rustled with their
feathers as they gracefully floated past on the water. The duckling recog-
nized the beautiful creatures and was seized with a strange fit of sadness.

" I will fly over to these royal birds and they will kill me because I,
who am so ugly, dare to approach them. But I do not care! It is better
to be killed by them than to be snapped at by the ducks, pecked by the
hens, kicked by the girl who looks after the poultry-yard, and to sufler
hardships in the winter." And he jumped into the water and swam
toward the beautiful swans. As soon as they saw him they rushed at him
with rustling wings.

"Only kill me!" said the poor creature as he bent his head down
against the surface of the water, waiting for death — but what did he see
in the clear water? He saw under him his own image in the water, but

234

THE UGLY DUCKLING

he was no longer a clumsy dark-gravish bird, ugly and hideous to behold,
but a beautiful swan !

It matters but little to be born in the duck-yard when one comes from
a swan's egg !

He felt extremely happy at having gone through all the sufferings and
hardships he had endured ; now he fully understood his good fortune, and
all the loveliness he saw around him. The big swans swam round him
and stroked him with their beaks.

Some little children came into the garden and threw bread and corn
into the water. The youngest of them cried out :

"There is a new one!" and the other children shouted for joy. "Yes,
a new one has come!" and they clapped their hands and danced about,
and ran to fetch their father and mother. Bread and cakes were thrown
into the water, and thev all said: "The new one is the prettiest! so
young and so beautiful!" and the old swans bowed their heads to him.

He felt quite bashful, and hid his head under his wings ; he did not
know what to do; he was extremelv happv, but not at all proud, for a
good heart is never proud. He was thinking how he had been persecuted
and despised, and now he heard all say that he was the most beautiful of
all beautiful birds. And the lilac-trees bent their branches right into the
water to him, and the sun shone so warm and so pleasantly. Then
he rustled his feathers and curved his graceful neck, and with joy he
shouted: "So much happiness I did not dream ot' when I was an ugly
duckling ! "

THE FLYING TRUNK

IT WAS A WONDERFUL TRUNK: A^. SOON AS YOU rRESSED THK LOCK
THE TRUNK COULU FLY.

THE FLYING TRUNK

THERE was once upon a time a merchant who was so rich that he
could have paved the whole street with silver coins, and even have
enough over for a narrow lane ; but he did not do anything oi the
kind. He knew how to make use of his money in quite a different way ;
if he paid out a shilling, he got back a dollar. That was the kind of
merchant he was — and then he died.

and began to lead a merry life; he

e paper kites out ot dollar notes, and

The son ni)w got all this money
went to masquerades every nighty m:
played ducks and drakes
across the lakes with gold
coins instead of stones, and
money soon comes to an
end in this way, which it
did. At last he had only
four pennies left, and no
other clothes than a pair of
slippers and an old dressing-
gt)wn. His friends no longer
cared for him, as they could
not very well be seen with
him in the streets; but one
of them, who was oi a kind
disposition, sent him an old
trunk with the message,
"Pack up." That was all
very well, but he had no-
thing to pack, and so he sat
down in the trunk.

It was a wonderttd trunk !
As soon as you pressed the lock, the trunk could Hy. He pressed the
lock, and off^ the trunk flew with him, up through the chimney and high
above the clouds, farther and farther away. The bottom of the trunk
began to creak, and he was afraid it would go tt> pieces. What a curious
descent that would be! Heaven preserve him !

237

238 THE FLYING TRUNK

And so he came to the land of the Turks. He hid the trunk in the
forest under some dried leaves and then went into the town. He could
very well do that, for in Turkey everybody goes about in dressing-gowns
and slippers, just as he did

He then met a nurse with a little child. "I say, you Turkish nurse!"
he said, "what big palace is that close to the town, with the windows
placed so high? "

"The princess lives there," she said. "It has been foretold that she
will be unfortunate in love. And therefore nt)bod\' is alUn\ cd to ct)nie
near her unless the king and the queen are present."

"Thank you," said the merchant's son; and so he went back to the
forest, sat down in the trunk, Hew to the roof of the palace, and crept
through the window into the princess's room.

She was lying asleep on the sofa ; she was so beautiful that the
merchant's son could not resist kissing her. She awoke, and was very
much frightened, but he said he was the god of the Turks, who had
come down to her through the air, at which she was much pleased.

So they sat down, side by side, and he began telling her stories about
her eyes: they were the most beautiful dark lakes, in which her thoughts
were swimming about like mermaids. And he told her almiit her fore-
head: it was a siiowv mountain with tlie most mugnihcent halls ami
pictures. And he toUl her about the stork who brings the sweet little
children.

Yes, they were reallv delightful stories. And so he asked the princess
if she would marry him, and she said "^'cs" at once.

"But you must come here on Saturday," she said; "the king and
queen will then be here to tea. They will be very proud to hear that 1
am going to marry the god of the Turks, but mind you are prepared with
a really beautiful fairy tale, for my parents are particularly fond of stories.
My mother prefers those with a moral and some romance, and inv father
the merry ones which make one laugh."

"Very well. I shall bring no other wedding present than a fairy tale,"
he said, and then they parted; but the princess gave him a saber which
was mounted with gold coins, and these especialK' would come in very
useful.

He then tlew away, bought a new dressing-gown, and then sat in the
forest, making up the fairy tale. It had to be ready by Saturday, so it was
not an easy task.

By the time he had finished it, it was Saturday.

The king, the queen, and the whole court were at tea with the
princess, waiting for him. He was most graciously received.

"I hope you will tell us a fairv tele," said the queen — "one that is
profound and instructive."

"But one that we can laugh at," said the king.

THE KING, THE QUEEN, AND THE WHOLE COURT WERE TAKlNll TEA WITH THE PRINCESS.

THE FLYING TRUNK 241

"With pleasure," he said, and so he began. We must now Hsten
attentively.

"There was once a bundle of matches that were exceedingly proud
because of their high degree. Their genealogical tree — that is to say, the
big fir-tree of which each was a little piece — had been a big old tree in
the forest. The matches were now lying on the shelf between a tinder-
box and an old iron pot, to whom they were telling all about their early
days. 'Yes, when we were green branches,' they said, 'we were indeed
well off. Every morning and evening we had diamond tea, — that 's what
we called the dew, — and all day we had sunshine whenever the sun was
shining, while all the little birds had to tell us stories. We could easily
tell that we were well off, for the other trees wore leaves only in the
summer, while our family could afford green clothes both summer and
winter. But then came the wood-cutter, like the great revolution, and
our family was split up. The head of the family got an appointment as
mainmast on a splendid ship, which could sail round the whole world if
it liked; and the other branches of the family came to different places,
and we were now consigned to the task of providing light for the lower
classes; that 's the reason we people of high degree came to he here in
the kitchen.'

'"Well, my fate has been quite a different one,' said the iron pot,
near which the matches were lying. ' From the very first I have been
scoured and have cooked ever so many meals. I look after the material
welfare of the household and am really of first importance in the house.
My only pleasure is, when dinner is over, to lie clean and bright on my
shelf and have a good talk with my comrades. With the exception of
the water-pail, which now and then is taken down into the yard, we all
spend our lite indoors. Our only messenger that brings news from the
outer world is the market-basket, but she talks so violently about the
government and the people ! Why, the other day an old pot became so
frightened at her talk that he fell down and broke in pieces ! She is very
outspoken, I must tell you — '

"'You talk a good deal too much ! ' said the tinder-box, and the steel
struck the Hint a blow so that the sparks fiew about. Come, let us have
a merry evening.'

" ' Yes, let us discuss who is of the best family, ' said the matches.

'"No, I don't like to talk about myself,' said the earthen pot; 'let us
get up an entertainment. I will begin — I will tell you about something
which has happened to all oi' you, so that you can easily enter into it, and
then it is all the more amusing: On the shores of the Baltic, in the
shelter of the Danish beeches — '

"'That 's a very pretty beginning!' said all the plates; 'that is sure to
be a story we shall like.'

'"Well, there I spent my youth with a quiet fiimily ; the furniture

242 THE FLYING TRUNK

was polished and the floors washed, and clean curtains were put up every
fortnight.'

"'What an interesting way vou have ot telling stories!' said the
broom. 'One can hear at once it is a lady who is telling stories, there
is something so true about it all.'

"'Yes, one can feel that,' said the water-pail; and in his joy he made
a jump and the water splashed all over the floor.

"And the pot went i)n with her story and the end was as good as the
beginning.

"All the plates rattled with delight, and the broom took green parsley
from the sand-hole and crowned the pot with it, for he knew it would
amuse the others, and ' If I crown her tt)-day,' he thought, ' she will
crown me to-morrow.'

"'I want to have a dance,' said the hre-tongs, and began dancing.
Good heavens ! How the tongs kicked high in the air ! The o\d chair-
cover over in the corner split at the sight. ' Ought I not to be crowned
too ? ' said the rtre-tongs, and so this was done.

"'They are a common lot, after all!' thought the matches.

"The tea-urn was now going to sing, but she had a cold, she said, and
could not sing except when she was at boiling-point ; but it \vas only
afl^ectation. She would not sing unless she was standing on the table in
the parlor.

"Over in the window lay an old quill pen which the servant-girl used
to write with ; there was nothing remarkable about him except that he
had been dipped too far into the inkstand, but of this he was very proud.
'If the tea-urn won't sing,' he said, 'she may leave it alone! Outside
in a cage hangs a nightingale who can sing; he has not learned much,
but we won't say anything disparaging about that this evening.'

"'I think it most improper,' said the tea-kettle, who was singer to
the kitchen utensils and half-sister to the tea-urn, 'that a foreign bird
should be allowed to sing. Is it patriotic ? I shall let the market-basket
decide the point."

'"I am very much annoyed,' said the market-basket; 'I am more
annoyed than any one can imagine. Is this the proper way to spend an
evening? Would it not be more sensible to put the house in order?
Every one should then be in his proper place, and I would manage the
whole affair. Then things would be quite different.'

"'Yes, let us make a disturbance,' they all cried. Just at that
moment the door opened. It was the servant-girl, and so they all became
silent; no one muttered a sound. But there was not a pot among them who
did not know what he could have done and how grand he was. ' It I had
had my way,' they all thought, 'we should have had a really merry evening.'

"The servant-girl took the matches and lighted the fire with them.
Gracious me! How they sputtered and blazed up!

THE FLYING TRUNK

243

"'Well, now,' they thought, 'all can now see that we are of the first
hnpo'taiKe. How we shine! What a light we give! ' — and then thev
went out."

"What a capital story!" said the cpiecn, "I felt just as if I were in
the kitchen with the matches. Well, thoLi shalt lia\e our daughter."

"Yes, ot course!" said the king. "Thou shalt marry our daughter
on Monday." They called him " thou " now that he was going to be
one ot the family.

HE PUT THE KIKEWOKKS ON HIS TKIINK AND FLKW VV INK) THE Alk Wl,
WENT THE FIREWORKS, SPURTINi; IN ALL DIRECTIONS.

The wedding was thus settled, and the evening before the whole town
was illuminated. Buns and fancy bread were thrown among the people ;
the street hoys stood on tiptoe and shouted, " Hurrah ! " and whistled through
their fingers. It was altogether very fine.

" Well, I suppose I shall have to do something as well," said the
merchant's son, and so he bought some rockets, crackers, and all the fire-
works he could think ot, put them on his trunk and then fiew up into
the air with it.

Crack! Ofi-" went the fireworks, spurting and fiashing in all direc-

244

THE FLYING TRUNK

tions. All the Turks were delighted and -jumped so high that their
slippers flew about their ears. Such a vision in the sky they had never
seen before. Now they could understand that it was the god of the
Turks himself who was going to marry the princess.

As soon as the merchant's son had descended into the wood with his
trunk he thought to himself: " I will go into the town and hear what
people think of it all!" And it was only natural he should like to know.

How the people were talking ! Every one he inquired of had seen it
in his own way, but all thought it was a splendid sight. " I saw the god
of the Turks myself," said one; "his eyes were like glittering stars, and
his beard like a falling waterfall."

"He flew away in a cloak of Are," said another; "the loveliest
cherubs were peeping out from among its folds."

Yes, he heard the most wonderful things, and the following day he
was to be married.

He then went back to the forest to sit in his trunk — but where was
it? The trunk was burned. A spark from the fireworks had set fire to
the trunk, which was burned to ashes. He could not flv any more and
could not get to his bride any more.

She stood the whole day on the roof waiting tor him. She is still
waiting for him; but he goes about all over the world telling stories,
though they are no longer as funny as that he told about the matches.

THE STORKS

ON THK LAST HOUSE IN A LITTLE VILLAGE A PAIR OK SI'ORKS
HAD liUILT THEIR NEST.

THE STORKS

ON the last house in a little village a pair of storks had built their
iiest. Mother Stork sat in it with her tour little young ones,
who stretched out their heads and their little black beaks, for they
had not vet become red. A little way off on the ridge of the root stood
Father Stork, erect and stiff; he had drawn up one of his legs, in order to
show he was putting himself to some inconvenience in standing as sentrv.
One would think he was carved out of wood, so still did he stand. "I
think it must look quite grand for my wife to have a sentry by her nest,"
thought he; "they can't know that I am her husband; thev must think
I have been ordered to stand here. It looks quite grand." And so he
continued to stand on one leg.

In the street below a lot ot children were plaving about, and when
they saw the storks one of the boldest of the boys began to sing the old
verse about the stork, and afterward all the others joined in, but thev sang
it just as he could remember it:

" Storkey. storkey, sty dh I
Swiftly homeward Ay, oh !
For your wite lies safe at rest.
With tour fledglings in the nest :
The first, he shall be hangeii !
The second shall be spitted through I
The third, he shall be roasted brown I
Tlie tourth shall be turned upside down !"

"Just listen to what those boys are singing," said the voung storks;
"thev say we shall be hanged and roasted."

"Never mind what they are singing," said Mother Stork; "don't
listen to them, and then it won't matter."

But the bovs went on singing, and pointed their fingers at the storks.
Only one ot the boys, whose name was Peter, said it was a shame to
make fun ot the birds, and would not join in with the others. Mother
Stork comforted her young ones and said: "Don't mind them! Just
look how quietly your tather takes it, standing there on one leg."

"We are so trightened ! " said the young ones, and drew back their
heads into the nest.

14* 247

248 THE STORKS

Next day, when the children came again to play and saw the stork,
they began their song again :

" The first, he shall be hanged I
The second shall be spitted through I "

"But we are not going to be hanged and spitted through, are we?"
asked the young ones.

"No, of course not!" said the mother. "You are going to learn to
fly, and I '11 look after your training ! Then we shall go into the fields
and pay visits to the frogs; they will make their bow to us in the water,
and sing, 'Croak, croak!' And then we shall eat them. It will be great
fun!"

"iYnd what then?" asked the young storks.

"Then all the storks all over the country will assemble, and the
autumn manoeuvers will commence. Every one must be able to fly prop-
erly; that is of great importance, for the general will kill with his beak
all those who cannot fly. So mind you learn as well as you can when
the training begins!"

"Then we shall be killed, after all, just as the boys said; and just listen,
now they are singing it again!"

"Listen to me, and not to them," said Mother Stork. "After the
great manoeuvers we fly to the hot countries — oh, ever so far from here,
across mountains and forests. We shall fly to Egypt, where there are
three-cornered stone houses which end in a point above the clouds; they
are called pyramids, and are older than any stork can imagine. And
there is a river there, which overflows its banks and leaves the land
covered with mud. You walk about in the mud and eat frogs."

"Oh, my!" said all the young ones.

"Yes, it is so delightful! One does nothing but eat all day, and
while we are enjoying ourselves down there, there is not in this country a
green leaf on the trees, and it is so cold here that the clouds freeze to
pieces and fall down in little white rags." It was the snow she referred
to, but she could not explain it any better.

"Do the naughty little boys also freeze to pieces?" asked the yoimg
storks.

" No, they do not freeze to pieces. But they are not very far from it ;
they have to sit indoors in dark rooms, and mope and shiver. You, how-
ever, can fly about in foreign countries, where there are flowers and warm
sunshine."

Some time had now passed, and the young storks were already so big
that they could stand up in the nest and look around, and Father Stork
came flying home every day with nice frogs, little snakes, and all kinds
of dainties for storks which he could find. And how he amused them
with all sorts of tricks! He would twist his head right round his tail,

KATHKR STI

r, IIOMK K\ KKV DAY WH H NICE FROGS, LITTLE SNAKES,
,L KINDS OF DAINTIES FOR STORKS.

THE STORKS

251

and clatter with his beak as if it were a rattle, and then he would tell
them stories all about the swamps.

"Now yt)u must learn to Hy ! " said Mother Stork one day; and so all
the four young ones had to go out on the ridge of the roof How thev
reeled ! They had to balance themselves with their wings, and yet they
were nearly fallinj); down.

NOW YOU MUST LEARN' T(

MOTHER STORK ONE DAY.

"Look at me!" said the mother. "This is the way to hold your
head. And your feet this way. One, two ! one, two ! That 's the way
to help yourselves on in the world." And then she Hew a little way. The
young storks made a little clumsy jump, when — bump ! — there they lav,
tor they were too heavy in the body.

"I don't want to fly," said one of the young storks, and crept back
into the nest; "I don't care to go to the hot countries."

" Do you want to freeze to death here when the winter comes ? Do

252 THE STORKS

you want the boys to come and hang you and spit vou and roast vou ? I
will just call them ! "

"Oh, no!" said the young stork; and then he hopped out on the
roof again to the others. On the third day they were able to fly a little,
and then they thought they could also soar into the air, and this thev tried
to do, but — bump! — down they fell, and so they had to use their wings
again. The boys down in the street began singing their song :

"Storkey, storkey — "'

"Shall we fly down and peck their eves out?" said the young storks.

"No, leave them alone," said the mother; "only listen to me — that 's
more important. One, two, three ! Now to the left round the chimney.
That was well done. The last stroke with the wings was done so
beautifully and correctly that vou shall have permission to come with me
to the swamp to-morrow. There are several nice stork families coming
there with their children. Let them see that mine are the nicest; so
mind you hold vourselves erect ; it looks well and commands respect."

"But are we not going to have our revenge on those naughty boys .^ "
asked the young storks.

"Let them scream as much as thev like. "\'ou are going to fly up to
the clouds, and will come to the land of the pyramids, while they have to
remain here shivering, without seeing a green leaf or a sweet apple."

"Yes, we will be revenged," thev whispered tt) one another; and so
they went on practising.

Of all the boys in the street no one was more persistent in singing the
mocking verse than the one who had begun it, and he was quite a little
fellow, not more than six years old. The young stork thought of course he
was a hundred vears old, for he was so much bigger than their mother and
father, and what did thev know about children's ages and how big human
beings can be ?

All their revenge was to fall upon this boy; he had first begun it, and
he was always going on with it. The young storks were verv angry, and
as they grew bigger they were less likely to tolerate it ; their mother had
at last to promise them that they should have their revenge, but not till the
last day when they were leaving the country.

"We must see, first, how you get on at the great manceuver. If vou
don't acquit yourselves well, the general will run you through with' his
beak, and then the boys will be right, after all, at least in one respect.
Now let me see you try."

"That vou shall ! " said the young ones ; and so they set to work with
a good will and practised every day till they could fly so nicely and lightlv
that it was a pleasure to look at them.

Then the autumn came. All the storks began to assemble before they
flew away to the hot countries for the winter.

THE STORKS

253

The manoeuver was a trial of strength ; the young storks had to Hy
over forests and towns to see how well they could tly, for it was a long
journey they had before them. The young storks did so well that they
got " exxellent " as their mark, and frogs and snakes as prizes. This was
the very highest award, and as tor the frogs and snakes, they were to eat
them, which the young storks did.

"Now we '11 be revenged ! " they said.

"Yes, of course," said Mother Stork. "What I have been thinking
over is just the right thing. I know where the pond is in which all the
little children are lying till the storks come to fetch them to their parents.
There the pretty little babies lie sleeping and dreaming so sweetly as they
never will again. All parents like to have a little child, and all children
like to have a sister or brother. We will now fly over to the pond and
fetch one to each ot the children wht) have not sung the wicked song and
made fun of the storks. None of the other children shall have any."

"But the boy who began the song — that naughty, wicked boy," cried
the young storks, "what shall we do to him .?"

" In the pond there lies a little dead baby, who has dreamed itself to
death. We will take this baby to him, and then he will cry because we
have brought him a dead little brother. But what about the good boy .?
Surely you have not forgotten him who said, ' It is a shame to make tun
of the birds.' We will bring him both a brother and a sister, and as his
name was Peter, all of vou shall also be called Peter."

And what she said came to pass, and all the storks were called " Peter,"
and that is what they are still called.

SILLY HANS

THI-: PRINCESS HAD I'L'liLICLY ANNOUNCKD THAT SHE WOULD MARRY
THE PERSON WHO COULD SPEAK BEST FOR HIMSEr.F.

SILLY HANS

OUT in the country there was an o\d mansion, and in it lived an old
squire and his two sons, who were so witty that they were really
too clever by half; they wanted to woo the king's daughter,
which they were quite at liberty to do, for she had publicly announced
that she would marry the person who could speak best for himself

The two brothers took eight days to prepare themselves — that was all
the time they could give to it ; but that was quite sufficient, for they pos-
sessed a good deal of elementary knowledge, and that comes in useful.
One of them knew the whole of the Latin dictionary, and the contents of
the newspaper of the city for the last three years, by heart ; in fact, he
could say it just as well backward as forward. The other one had studied
the rules and regulations of all the guilds and everything that an alderman
ought to know, so he thought he should be able to talk of the affairs of
the state; and besides this he could also embroider braces, for he was of a
gentle nature and very nimble with his fingers.

"I shall win the king's daughter," said both of them; and then their
father gave each of them a beautiful horse: the one who knew the dic-
tionary by heart got a coal-black horse, and he who knew all about the
guilds and the aldermen and could embroider received a milk-white horse.
And then they rubbed the corners of their mouths with cod-liver oil, so
that they might be able to talk more glibly. All the servants were in the
courtyard to see them mount their horses, and just then came the third
brother, — for there were three, — but no one took him into account as
one of the brothers, for he did not know as much as they, and he was only
called "Silly Hans."

"Where are you going to, since you have got vour fine clothes on?"
he asked.

"To the palace to woo the king's daughter. Have n't you heard what
the drummer is announcing all over the country?" And then they told
him.

"My w(,)rd ! then I '11 gt) too," said Silly Hans; and the brothers
laughed at him and rode away.

"Father, let me have a horse," said Silly Hans. "I should like so

257

258

SILLY HANS

much to get married. If she takes me, she takes me; and if she does n't
take me, I will take her for all that."

" What nonsense ! " said his father ; " I sha'n't give vou a horse, ^^'hv,
you can't talk properly. No; vour brothers are fine specimens of what
young fellows ought to be."

"If I can't have a horse," said Silly Hans, "I '11 take the billy-goat;
he 's mine, and he carries me very well." And so he jumped astride the
billy-goat, stuck his heels into its side, and set off along the highroad.
"Heigh! what a pace ! I am coming," said Silly Hans, and sang away till
you heard him far and wide.

But the brothers rode quietly on in front; they did not speak a word;
they were thinking over all the clever sayings with which they would have
to be prepared, for they intended to be so very smart, vou know.

hullo!" shouted silly HANS. "JUST LOOK WHAT I HAVE FOUND!" AND HE
SHOWED THEM A DEAD CROW HE HAD FOUND.

"Hullo!" shouted Silly Hans, "here I am. Just look what I have
found in the highroad!" and he showed them a dead crow which he
had found.

"Blockhead!" they said, "what are you gcMiig to do with that?"

"I '11 make a present of it to the king's daughter."

"Yes, do so by all means," they said, as they laughed and rode on.

"Hullo! here I am! Just look what I have found now; you don't
find that every day in the highroad."

And the brothers turned round again to see what it was.

"Blockhead!" they said, "that 's an old wooden clog, and the upper
leather is gone. Is the king's daughter going to have that as well?"

"That she shall," said Silly Hans; and the brothers laughed and rode
on, and got a long way ahead.

here's my cooking apparatus," said silly HANS, AND SO HE PULLED OUT THE OLD
WOODEN CLOG AND PLACED THE CROW ON IT.

SILLY HANS 261

" Hullo ! here T am ! " shouted Silly Hans ; " I am really in luck's
way. Heigh-ho! This is really wonderful ! "

"What have you found now?" asked the brothers.

" Oh," said Silly Hans, " it is hardly worth mentioning, but how
pleased the king's daughter will be ! "

"Ugh ! " said the brothers ; "why ; that 's mud just thrown up from the
ditch."

" Yes, that 's what it is," said Silly Hans ; "and it is of the finest sort
— so fine that you can't hold it between yourfingers;" and so he filled his
pocket with it.

But the brothers rode on as fast as their horses' legs could carry them,
and thus they arrived at the city gate an hour earlier than Hans. Here
the suitors received numbers in the order in which they arrived, and were
then placed in rows of six each, and placed so closely that they could
not even move their arms, which was a very good thing, for otherwise
they would have cut each other's backs to pieces, for the one was standing
in front of the other.

All the other inhabitants of the country stood round about the palace,
right up to the windows, to see che king's daughter receive the suitors.
As they entered the room, one by one, the power of speech seemed to
desert them.

"No good," said the king's daughter. "Away with you!"

Now came the turn of the brother who knew the dictionary by heart,
but he had forgotten it all while standing in the row; the floor creaked at
each step he took, and the ceiling was of looking-glass, so that he could
see himself standing on his head, and at every window there were three
clerks and an alderman, who wrote down everything that was said, so that
it could get into the papers at once, and be sold for a penny at the street
corner. It was really terrible, and, moreover, they had put so much fire in
the stove that the drum was red-hot.

"It 's dreadfully hot in here," said the suitor.

"Yes, that 's because my father is roasting chickens to-day," said the
king's daughter.

Bah ! there he stood ; he had not expected to be spoken to in that
way; he did not know what to say, although he wanted to say something
clever. Bah!

" No good," said the king's daughter. " Go away ; " and so he had to go.

Next came his brother.

"There 's a dreadful heat in here," he said.

" Yes, we are roasting chickens to-day," said the king's daughter.

"Beg your par — " he said; and all the clerks wrote down "Beg
your par — ."

" No good," said the king's daughter. " Go away."

Then came Silly Hans, riding his billy-goat right into the room.
" W'hat a sweltering heat ! " he said.

262

SILLY HANS

" That 's because I am roasting chickens," said the king's daughter.

"That 's lucky," said Silly Hans. "I suppose I can get a crow
roasted here, then ? "

"That you may," said the king's daughter; "hut have you got any-
thing to roast it in, for I have neither pot nor pan."

"That I have," said Silly Hans. " Here 's a cooking apparatus with a tin
handle; " and so he pulled out the old wooden clog and placed the crow on it.

"That 's enough for one meal," said the king's daughter; "but where
shall you get the dripping from ? "

" I have it in my pocket," said Silly Hans. " I have got so much
that I don't mind if I spill some of it ; " and so he ti>ok a little of the mud
out of his pocket and basted the crow with it.

" That 's what I like," said the king's daughter. " You can give one
an answer, at any rate, and you can speak; and so I will have you for my
husband. But do you know that every word we say and have said is
written down, and will appear in the paper to-morrow r At every
window you will see three clerks and an old alderman, and the alderman
is the worst of all, for he does n't understand anything." She said this to
frighten Hans, and all the clerks giggled and upset the ink on the floor.

" Oh, these are the gentlemen, are they?" said Silly Hans; "then 1
suppose I must give the alderman the best;" and so he turned out his
pocket and flung the mud right into his face.

"That was clever," said the king's daughter; "I could not have done
it. But I shall learn it right enough."

And so Silly Hans was made king, and got a wife and a crown, and
sat on a throne, all of which we have read about in the alderman's paper —
and that 's one you can't depend upon.

THE WILD SWANS

FAR away from here, in the land where the swallows flv to when we
have winter, lived a king who had eleven sons and one daughter,
whose name was Elisa. The eleven brothers, who were all princes,
went to school with a star on their breast and a saber by their side; they
wrote on golden slates with diamond pencils, and knew their lessons by
heart just as well as if they had read them from a book. One could see at
once that they were princes. Elisa, the sister, sat on a small footstool of
plate glass and had a picture-book which cost as much as half the kingdom.
Yes, those children led indeed a happy life, but it was not always to
be so.

266 THE WILD SWANS

Their father, who was king of the whole country, married a wicked
queen, who was not at all kind to the poor children. On the very first
day this became apparent to them. There were great festivities all over
the palace, and the children were playing at "having company," but
instead of their getting, as usual, all the cakes and roasted apples that could
be had, the queen gave them only sand in a tea-cup and said they might
pretend it was something nice.

The following week she sent their little sister, Elisa, away to some
peasants in the country, and before long she succeeded in getting the king
to believe all sorts of things about the poor princes, so that he did not
trouble himself any more about them.

"Fly out into the world and shift for yourselves!" said the wicked
queen; " Hy away like great birds without the power of speech ! " but she
could not, however, carry out her bad intentions as far as she wished, for
the princes were turned into eleven beautiful wild swans. With a strange
cry thev flew out through the palace windows and away over the park
and the forest.

It was still quite early in the morning when they passed the peasant's
cottage where their sister lay asleep ; here they hovered over the roof,
twisting their long necks and flapping their wings, but nobody heard or
saw them; they had to set out again, high up toward the clouds, till they
came to a great,, gloomy forest which reached right down to the shore.

Poor little Elisa was standing in the peasant's parlor, playing with a
green leaf, the only plaything she had; she made a hole in the leaf,
looked up at the sun through it, and fancied she saw the bright eyes of
her brothers, and every time the warm sunbeams shone upon her cheek
she thought of all their kisses.

One day passed just like another. When the wind blew through the
big hedges of roses outside the cottage, it would whisper to the roses,
"Who can be more beautiful than you?" But the roses shook their
heads and said, "Elisa!" And when the old woman on a Sunday sat
in the doorway reading her hymn-book, the wind would turn over the
leaves and say to the book, "Who can be better than you?" "Elisa!"
answered the hymn-book; and it was the real truth that the roses and the
hymn-book had said.

When she was fifteen years old she was to return home; and when
the queen saw how beautiful she was, she became filled with anger" and
hatred against her. She would have liked to turn her into a wild swan
like her brothers, but she dared not do so at once, as the king would, of
course, want to see his daughter.

Early in the morning the queen went into the bath, which was
built of marble and adorned with soft cushions and the most beautiful
carpets, and she took three toads, kissed them, and said to one of
them, " Sit on Elisa's head when she gets into her bath, so that

THE WILD SWANS 267

she may become lazy like yourself! " "Sit upon her forehead," she
said to the other, " so that she may become ugly like yourself, and
her father will not recognize her ! " " Rest close to her heart," she
whispered to the third ; " let her heart become wicked, so that she may
suffer through it!" She then put the toads into the clear water, which
at once turned a greenish color. She called Elisa, undressed her, and let
her go into the water, and as she ducked her head, one of the toads settled
itself in her hair, the other on her forehead, and the third on her breast;
but Elisa did not seem to notice them. As soon as she stood up, three
red poppies were floating on the water; had the animals not been poisonous
and had they not been kissed by the queen, they would have been turned
into red roses; but they became flowers, however, through resting on her
head and near her heart. She was too good and innocent tor the witch-
craft to have any power over her.

When the wicked queen saw this, she took some walnut juice and
rubbed Elisa with it till she became quite brown, besmeared her pretty
face with a nasty-smelling salve, and ruffled her lovely hair, so that it was
impossible to recognize the beautiful Elisa.

When her father saw her he became quite frightened and said that she
was not his daughter. Nobody but the bandog and the swallows would
acknowledge her; but they were only humble animals and were of no
importance.

Poor Elisa then began to cry and think of her eleven brothers, who
were all lost to her. Greatly distressed in mind, she stole out of the palace
and walked the whole day across fields and moors till she came to the big
forest. She did not know where she wanted to go, but she felt so sad
and longed so much for her brothers. No doubt they, like herself, had
also been driven out into the world, and she made up her mind she would
try to find them.

She had been only a short time in the forest when night set in; she
had strayed away from the roads and paths, and so she lay down on the soft
moss, said her evening prayers, and leaned her head up against the stump
of a tree. All was still and quiet, the air was so mild ; and round about,
in the grass and on the moss, hundreds of glow-worms were shining like
green fire. When she gently touched one of the branches above her, the
shining insects fell down to her like shooting-stars.

The whole night long she dreamed about her brothers. They were
again playing as children, writing with diamond pencils on golden slates,
and looking at the most beautiful picture-book, which cost as much as
half the kingdom. But they did not write strokes and pot-hooks as before
— no, they wrote about the most valiant deeds which they had performed,
and about evervthing they had seen and gone through. In the picture-
book everything was alive — the birds were singing and the people came
walking out oi' the book and spoke to Elisa and her brothers, but when

268 THE WILD SWANS

she turned over the leaf, they ran back to their places, so that the pictures
should not be disarranged.

When she awoke the sun was already high in the heavens; she could
not exactly see it, as the lofty trees spread their branches closely and firmly
above her, but its beams were playing through them like a fluttering veil
of gold. There came a fragrance from the verdure around her, and the
birds almost perched on her shoulder. She heard the splashing of the
water from the many springs, which all fell into a lake that had the most
beautiful sandy bottom. There were thick bushes growing all round the
lake, but in one place the stags had dug out a large opening, and here
Elisa got to the water, which was so clear that had not the wind put the
branches and bushes into motion, she must have believed that thev had
been painted on the bottom of the lake, so plainly were all the leaves
reflected, both those through which the sun shone and those which were
quite in the shade.

As soon as she saw her own face she became quite frightened, so
brown and ugly was it; but on wetting her little hand and rubbing her
eyes and forehead, the white skin soon shone through. She then took ofl-"
all her clothes and went into the fresh water, and a lovelier royal child
than she could not be found in this world.

When she was dressed again and had plaited her long hair, she went to
the sparkling spring, drank out of the hollow of her hand, and wandered
farther into the forest, without knowing whither she went. She thought
of her brothers and of the kind God, who surely would not desert her.
He let the wild forest apples grow, so that the hungry might be satisfied ;
he showed her such a tree, the branches of which were bent beneath the
weight of the fruit, and there she made her midday meal. After having
propped up the branches of the tree she walked ofl^" into the darkest parts of
the forest. It was so quiet that she heard her own footsteps, heard every
little dry leaf being crushed under her foot ; not a bird was to be seen, nor
could any sunbeam penetrate through the great close branches of the trees.
The lofty trunks stood so close to one another that when she looked straight
before her it appeared as if one barrier of logs close upon another encircled
her. Oh, such a solitude she had never known before !

The night was very dark, and not one single little glow-worm glittered
in the moss. Quite distressed, she lay down to sleep. She then thought
she saw the branches part above her and our Lord looking down upon
her with eyes full of tenderness, while little angels peeped out above his
head and from under his arms.

When she woke in the morning she did not know whether she had
been dreaming, or whether it had all really happened.

She had not gone many steps when she met an old woman with a
basket of berries, of which the woman gave her some. Elisa asked her if
she had not seen eleven princes riding through the forest.

THE WILD SWANS 269

" No," said the old woman ; " but yesterday I saw eleven swans, with
golden crowns on their heads, swimming down the river close by."

And she led Elisa some distance farther till they came to a slope, at
the bottom of which a river wound its way. The trees on its banks
stretched their long, leafy branches across the water to each other, and
where they, according to their natural growth, could not reach the other
side, the roots had been torn up from the soil, and hung out over the
water, with the branches entwined in each other.

Elisa bade farewell to the old woman, and walked along the river till it
riowed out into the great, open sea.

The great, glorious ocean lay before the young maiden ; but not a sail
was to be seen out there, not a boat was in sight. How was she to con-
tinue her journey? She looked at the countless little pebbles on the
shore; the water had worn them quite round. Glass, iron, stones, every-
thing that had been washed up by the sea had been shaped by the water,
and this was even far softer than her delicate hand.

"It rolls on and on persistently, and the hardest substance must in the
end yield to it. I will be just as persistent. Thanks for the lesson you
have given me, you clear, rolling waves! One day, my heart tells me,
you will carry me to my dear brothers."

Among the sea-weeds that had been washed ashore lay eleven white
swans' feathers, which she gathered into a bunch. There were drops of
water on them, but whether they were dew-drops or tears, no one could
say. It was very lonely there on the shore, but she did not feel it, for the
sea was perpetually changing, and presented, in fact, a greater variety of
aspects in a few hours than the fresh-water lakes could show in a whole
year. If a large black cloud appeared, it was as if the sea meant to say,
"I too can look black,' and then the wind would begin to blow and the
waves to show their white crests; but if the clouds were bathed in the
red sunlight and the winds had gone to rest, the sea was like a rose-leaf;
now it was green, now white, but however calmly it might rest, there
was always a slight motion near the shore; the sea heaved gently, like the
breast of a sleeping child.

Just as the sun was setting, Elisa saw eleven wild swans with golden
crowns on their heads flying toward land, one behind the other; they
looked like a long white sash. Elisa went up the slope and hid herself
behind a bush; the swans settled down close to her, and began flapping
with their large white wings.

The moment the sun sank below the water's edge the swans' plumage
fell off the birds, and there stood eleven handsome princes, Elisa's brothers.
She uttered a loud cry, for although they had changed greatly, she knew
it was they, she felt it must be they; she ran into their arms and called
them by their names, and they became so happy and delighted when
they saw her and recognized their little sister, who was now so tall and

270 THE WILD SWANS

beautiful. Thev laughed and they cried, and they soon came to under-
stand how cruel their stepmother had been to them all.

"We brothers," said the eldest, "must riy about as wild swans as long
as the sun is in the heavens; when it has gone down we resume our
human shape; at sunset we must therefore always take care to be near a
resting-place, for if at that time we were to fly toward the clouds, we
should, as human beings, be plunged into the depths of the sea. We do
not live here; yonder, across the sea, lies a countr)^ just as beautiful as
this, but the way thither is long; we have to cross the wide sea, and there
is no island on the way, on which we could rest for the night; only a
lonely little rock which rears its head in the midst of the ocean out there,
but it is only just large enough for us all to rest upon it when we sit side
by side. If the sea goes high, the water splashes high over us ; still we are
thankful to the Lord for it. There we pass the night in our human form ;
without it we should never be able to visit our beloved country, for it takes
two of the longest days in the year to accomplish the journey. Only once
a year are we allowed to visit our paternal home, and then we can re-
main here for only eleven days, when we fly over this big forest, from
which we can see the palace where we were born and where our father
lives, and the lofty tower of the church where our mother lies buried.
Here we feel as if we were related to every tree and bush, here the \sild
horses are running across the plains, just as we saw them in our child-
hood; here the charcoal-burners are singing the old songs to which we
danced as children; here is our native country, to which we are drawn;
and here we have found you, our dear little sister. Only two more days
can we remain here, and then we must cross the sea to a beautiful
country, but it is not our own country. How shall we take you with us.?
We have neither ship nor boat."

"How shall I be able to save your" asked the sister.

And so thev went on talking together nearly the whole night, and
only for a few hours did they get any sleep.

Elisa awoke at the sound of the rustling of the wings as the swans
were soaring above her. Her brothers had again been turned into swans
and were flying in large circles above her head, till at last they flew far
away and out of sight. But one of them, the youngest, remained behind;
he laid his head on her lap, while she stroked his white wings, and thus
they remained together the whole day. Toward evening the others came
back, and when the sun had disappeared they assumed their natural shape.

"To-morrow we must fly away from here, and we dare not return for
a whole year; but we cannot leave vou thus. Have you the courage to
accompany us? My arm is strong enough to carry you through the forest.
Should not, then, all our wings be strong enough to fly with you across
the sea?"

"Yes, take me with you," said Elisa. _

THE WILD SWANS

271

"They spent the whole night in making a hig, strong net of the pliant
willow hark and the tough sedges; on this Elisa lay down, and when
the sun rose and her hrothers had heen changed into wild swans, they
seized the net with their heaks and Hew high up toward the clouds with
their dear sister, who was still asleep. The sunbeams fell right on her
face, and one of the swans therefore Hew over her head, so that his broad
wings could afford her shade.

They were far away from land when Elisa awoke; she thought she
was still dreaming, so strange did it seem to her to be carried high up in
the air across the sea. By her side lay a branch with delicious ripe berries

BROTHERS S'lANDING ROUND

DASHED A(;AINST THE ROC

RM IN ARA

WHILE THE SEA

and a hunch of savory roots, which her youngest brother had gathered
and placed at her side. She smiled gratefully to him, for she knew it was
he who flew right over her head and shaded her with his wings.

They were so high up that the first ship they saw below them looked
like a white sea-gull lying upon the water. A great cloud stood behind
them, just like a big mountain, and across it Elisa saw the shadow of
herself and the eleven swans, quite gigantic in size, as they sailed through
the air. It was quite a picture, prettier than any she had ever seen ; but
as the sun rose higher, and the cloud was left further and further behind,
the floating shadow-picture gradually vanished.

Like a whizzing arrow they shot through the air the whole day.

272 THE WILD SWANS

although their progress was somewhat slower than usual, as they now had
their sister to carry. Dark clouds began gathering toward the evening,
and Elisa anxiously saw the sun sinking, and yet there was no sign of the
lonely rock in the ocean. It appeared to her as if the swans were making
greater efforts with their wings. Alas ! she was the cause of their not
being able to get on fast enough ; when the sun had gone down they
would become human beings and fall into the sea and be drowned. She
then prayed to our Lord from the bottom of her heart, but no rock could
as yet be seen. The black cloud came nearer ; the violent gusts of wind
foretold a storm ; the clouds gathered in one great, threatening wave,
which moved forward like a solid mass ot lead, while one Hash oi light-
ning followed upon another.

The sun was now close to the edge of the ocean. Elisa's heart
trembled ; the swans then darted downward so suddenly that she thought
she must fall out of the net, but soon they sailed on again through the air.
The sun was half-way under the horizon, and just then she caught sight
of the little rock below them; it did not appear larger than the head of a
seal above water. The sun was sinking rapidly; now it seemed no larger
than a star, and then her foot touched the firm ground; the sun went
out like the last spark in a piece of burning paper. She saw her brothers
standing round her, arm in arm, but there was only just room enough for
them all. The sea dashed against the rock and descended upon them like
a heavy shower of rain ; the heavens were continually lighted up with
flashes of fire, and peal after peal of thunder followed each other ; but
sister and brothers held each other by the hands and sang a psalm, from
which they received both comfort and courage.

At daybreak the air was pure and quite still. As soon as the sun rose
the swans flew away with Elisa from the rock. The sea was still high,
and, to them, who were so high up in the air, the white foam on the dark
green waves appeared like millions of swans swimming on the waters.

When the sun had risen higher Elisa saw before her, half floating in
the air, an alpine country with glittering masses of ice on the mountains,
in the midst of which lay a palace almost a mile long, with one colonnade
daringly piled above another, while below were forests of waving palms
and luxurious flowers as large as mill-wheels. She asked if this was the
country whither she was going, but the swans shook their heads, for what
she saw was nothing but the magnificent and ever-changing aerial castle of
Fata Morgana ; thither they dared not bring any human being. Elisa
was still gazing at it when the mountains, forests, and palace all tumbled
together, and in their place stood twenty stately churches, all alike, with
high steeples and pointed windows. She thought she heard the sound of
an organ, but it was the sea she heard. Now she was quite close to the
churches, when they changed into a whole fleet of ships that were sailing
below her. She looked down and found it was only clouds of sea-mist

PALACE ALJKIST A MILE LONG, WITH ONE
PILED ABOVE ANOTHER.

ILONNADE DARINGL'

THE WILD SWANS 275

floating over the ocean. Yes, she saw continual changes before her eyes,
and now, at last, she saw the real country she was going to, with its
beautiful blue mountains, cedar-woods, cities, and palaces. Long before the
sun had set she was sitting on the mountain before a large cave which was
overgrown with delicate green creepers looking like embroidered carpets.

"Now we shall see what you will dream about here to-night," said
the youngest brother, and showed her to her bedchamber.

"Heaven grant I may dream how I shall be able to save you!" she
said, and this thought took entire possession of her mind.

She prayed so fervently to God for help that even in her sleep she
went on praying. She thought she was flying high up in the air to Fata
Morgana's palace ; the fairy herself came to meet her ; she was so beauti-
ful and gorgeously attired, and yet she was very much like the old woman
who had given her the berries in the forest, and told her about the swans
with the golden crowns.

"Your brothers can be saved," she said; "but have you the courage
and perseverance ? Water, as you know, is softer than your delicate hands,
but still it can change the shape of the hardest stones ; but it does not feel
the pain that your fingers will feel ; it has no heart and does not sufl^er
from the anxiety and anguish that you will have to endure. Do you see
the nettle which I hold in my hand ? Of this kind a great many grow
round about the cave in which you sleep, but, mark you, only those which
grow there and on the graves of the churchyards can be used ; these you
must gather, although they will blister your hands ; tread the nettles with
your feet and they will turn into flax, and this you rnust twist and then knit
eleven shirts of mail with long sleeves. Throw these over the eleven
swans, and the spell will be broken. But you must remember particularly
that from the moment you begin your task till it is finished, even though
it may take you years, you must not speak; the first word you speak will
go like a deadly dagger to your brothers' hearts and kill them ; on your
silence depend their lives. Remember all this ! "

And then she touched Elisa's hand with the nettle, which was like
burning fire, and caused her to wake. It was broad daylight, and close to
where she had slept lay a nettle like the one she had seen in her dream.
She then fell on her knees, thanked the Lord, and went out of the cave to
begin her task.

With her delicate hands she took hold of the nasty nettles, which were
like fire and blistered her hands and arms ; yet she was quite willing to
sufl^er it all, it only she were able to save her dear brothers. She trod everv
nettle with her bare feet and twisted the green flax from it.

When the sun had gone down her brothers came back ; thev grew
frightened when they found her so silent, and thought it was some new
witchery of the wicked stepmother's ; but when they saw her hands they
understood what she was doing for their sake. The youngest brother

276 THE WILD SWANS

wept, and where his tears fell on her hands the pain ceased and the burning
blisters vanished.

She worked all night, for she could not rest till she had set free her dear
brothers. During the whole of the following day, while the swans w ere
away, she sat all alone, and the time had never llown so quicklv. One
shirt was already finished, and now she had begun another.

Just then a hunting-horn was heard among the mountains and startled
Elisa. The sound came nearer ; she heard the barking of dogs. She took
refuge in the cave in great fright, tied the nettles she had gathered and
hackled into a bundle, and sat down on it.

At that moment a big dog jumped out from the thicket, and immedi-
ately afterward he was followed bv another, and still another ; they barked
loudly, ran back, and then returned again. In a few minutes all the
huntsmen were there outside the cave, and the handsomest among them
was the king of the country. He went up to Elisa, for he had never seen
a more beautiful girl in his life.

" How did vou come here, you lovely child .? " he said. Elisa shook
her head ; she dared not speak, for her brothers' deliverance and lives
depended upon it. She hid her hands under her apron, so that the king
should not see what she had to suffer.

"Come with me," he said; "you must not remain here. If you are
as good as vou are beautiful I will dress you in silks and velvet, and
place the golden crown upon your head and you shall live in my grandest
palace ! " And he lifted her on to his horse. She wept and wrung her
hands, but the king said : " I think only of your happiness. One day
vou will thank me for it all." And so he dashed off across the moun-
tains, holding her before him on his horse, and the huntsmen came
rushing on behind.

Toward sunset the magnificent royal city with its churches and
cupolas lay before them. The king led her into the palace, where large
fountains were playing in the lofty marble halls, and where walls and
ceilings were resplendent with paintings, but she had no mind for such
things. She wept and mourned and passively allowed the women to dress
her in regal robes, plait pearls in her hair, and put delicate gloves on her
blistered fingers.

As she stood there in all her splendor, she was so dazzlingly beautiful
that all the court bowed still lower before her. And the king chose her
for his bride, although the archbishop shook his head and whispered that
the pretty maiden from the forest was, in all probability, a witch who had
dazzled their eyes and bewitched the king's heart.

But the king would not listen to this ; he ordered the music to
strike up, the most costly dishes to be served, and the loveliest girls to
dance around her. She was conducted through fragrant gardens to most
magnificent halls, but not a smile could be seen on her lips or in her

ON (_)XE OF THE LARGEST TOJIBSTONES. ELISA S.A
BUSY TAKING OFF THEIR RAGS.

).ME LC.LV WITCHES

THE WILD SWANS 279

eyes. Sorrow seemed to he imprinted upon her as her everlasting
heritage.

The king now opened the door to a small chamher close to the
one in which she was to sleep ; the Hoor was decked with costly green
carpets, hut the room was otherwise exactly like the cave in which she
had been living ; on the floor lay the bundle of flax which she had spun
out of the nettles, and from the ceiling hung the shirt of mail which she
had finished, — all of which one of the huntsmen had brought with him as
curiosities.

" Here you can imagine yourself back in your late home," said the
king. " Here is the work you were busy with there; and now in the midst
of all the splendor around you it will amuse you to recall that time to
vour mind."

When Elisa saw that which was so dear to her heart, a smile played
round her mouth, and the blood came back into her cheeks ; she thought
of her brothers' deliverance, and kissed the king's hand ; he pressed her to
his heart and ordered all the church bells to be rung to announce their
wedding festivities. The beautiful dumb maiden from the forest was to
be the queen of the land.

The archbishop then whispered wicked words into the king's ears, hut
they did not penetrate to his heart; the wedding was to take place, and
the archbishop himself had to place the crown on her head. He mali-
ciously pressed the narrow ring so tightly down upon her forehead that it
hurt her, but a heavier ring lay around her heart, and that was the grief
for her brothers, so that she did not feel the bodily pain. Her mouth
was sealed, — one single word would cost her brothers their lives; but her
eves told of the deep love she bore for the kind, handsome king, who did
everything to make her happy. She loved him with her whole heart and
became more and more fond of him every day. Oh, if she only could
have dared to confide in him, to tell him of her suff^erings! But she must
remain dumb, and as dumb she must complete her task. She therefore
stole away from his side at night, went into the little private room which
was fitted up like the cave, and knitted one shirt of mail after another;
but when she began the seventh she had no flax.

She knew that the nettles which she had to use grew in the church-
yard, but she herself must gather them; how should she be able to get
there ?

"Oh, what is the pain in my fingers compared to the anguish which
my heart sufi-ers .? " she thought; "I must venture upon it. The Lord
will not forsake me." With a heart heavy with fear and anxiety, as if
she were bent upon some evil deed, she stole down into the garden in the
clear moonlight night, walked through the long avenues of trees and along
the lonely streets to the churchyard. There, on one of the largest tomb-
stones, she saw some ugly witches sitting in a ring and busy taking off

280 THE WILD SWANS

their rags, as if they were going to bathe, whereupon they began digging
up the freshly made graves with their long, bony fingers, pulling out the
corpses and eating their flesh. Elisa had to pass close by them, and they
glared at her with their evil eyes, but she said her prayers, gathered the
stinging nettles, and carried them home to the palace.

Only one human being had seen her, and that was the archbishop ; he
had been up while the others -slept. Now he was convinced that there
was something wrong with the queen : she was a witch, and that explained
how she had been able to bewitch the king and the whole of the
people.

He told the king in the confessional what he had seen and what he
feared, but as the terrible words came from his lips the carved images of
saints shook their heads as if they wanted to say: "It is not true; Elisa is
innocent." The archbishop, however, had quite a different explanation:
he said that they bore witness against her, and that they shook their heads
at her sins. A couple of bitter tears rolled down the king's cheeks, and
he went home with doubt in his heart. That night he pretended to
sleep, but no peaceful slumber closed his eyes; he saw how Elisa got up
from her bed, and every night afterward she did the same. Every time he
followed quietly after her, and saw her disappear in her private room.

Day by day his brow became darker. Elisa noticed this, but she could
not understand the reason. It made her anxious, however, and increased
the suffering she endured on her brothers' account. Her hot tears flowed
down upon the royal velvet and purple, and lay there like sparkling
diamonds, and all who saw the splendor that surrounded her wished to be
a queen. She would soon be finished with her work: only one shirt was
wanting; but she had no more tlax, and not a single nettle. Once more,
and only this once, would she have to go to the churchyard and gather a
few handfuls of nettles. She thought with dread of the lonely walk and
the horrible witches, but her will was as firm as was her trust in the Lord.

Elisa went, but was followed by the king and the archbishop. They
saw her disappear through the iron gate of the churchyard, and when they
came up to it they saw the witches sitting on the tombstone, just as Elisa
had seen them. The king turned away at the thought that she, whose
head had rested on his breast that very evening, might be amongst them.

"The people must judge her," he said. And the people gave judgment
that "she was to be burned by the devouring fire."

From the magnificent halls of the royal palace she was conducted to a
dark, damp dungeon, into which the wind whistled through the grated
windows ; instead of velvet and silks they gave her the bundle of nettles
she had gathered to rest her head upon. The hard, stinging shirts of
mail which she had knitted were to serve her as mattress and coverlet,
but they could not have given her anything she could have prized more.
She began her work again and prayed to God, while outside the boys in

THE WILD SWANS

281

the street were singing mocking ditties ahcnit her. Not a soul came near
her to comfort her with a kind word.

Toward evening she heard the rustling of a swan's wings near tlie
window grating ; it was the youngest of her brothers who had discovered
his sister. She sobbed loudly for joy, although she knew that the coming
night would probably be her last, but now her work was almost com-
pleted, and her brothers were near her.

FLAPPliNU THEIR LARGE WINGS.

The archbishop came to remain with her during her last hour — this he
had promised the king ; but she shook her head — yes ! — and begged him by
looks and signs to go away. She must finish her work that night, other-
wise everything would be in vain — everything — her sufferings, her tears,
and her sleepless nights. The archbishop left her with angry words, but
poor Elisa knew that she was innocent, and went on with her work.

The little mice ran about on the floor and dragged the nettles to her
feet, wanting to be of some help to her, and a thrush settled itself near
the window grating and sang the whole night as merrily as it could, so
that she should not lose courage.

The day was only just breaking ; it was about an hour before
sunrise when the eleven brothers appeared at the gate of the palace and
asked to be conducted to the king, but they were told it could not be

282 THE WILD SWANS

done. It was still night, the king was asleep, and they dared not wake
him. The brothers begged and prayed and threatened ; the guard
appeared, and even the king came out and asked what was the matter.
But just at that moment the sun rose and there were no princes to be seen,
but over the palace eleven wild swans were seen flying awav.

All the inhabitants were streaming out through the gate of the town
to see the witch being burned. A miserable horse drew the carton which
Elisa sat; she had been given a gown of coarse sackcloth to wear, her
beautiful long hair hung loosely about her lovely head; her cheeks were as
pale as death, her lips moved slowly, while her fingers were twisting the
green flax: even on her way to death she would not give up the work
she had begun. The ten shirts of mail lay at her feet, and she was now
busy knitting the eleventh, while the mob was scoffing at her.

"Look at the witch, how she is mumbling to herself! She has n't
got a hymn-book in her hand, — no! There she sits with some of her
wicked witchery. Let us tear it into a thousand pieces!"

And all the people rushed at her and wanted to tear the shirts to
pieces, when the eleven wild swans came flying and settled down around
her on the cart, flapping their large wings. At th'\> the crowd drew
back in terror.

"It 's a sign from heaven! She must be innocent!" many whispered;
but they did not venture to say it aloud.

The executioner now took her by the hand, when suddenly she threw
the eleven shirts over the swans, and there stood eleven handsome princes;
but the youngest had a swan's wing instead of one of his arms, because
one of the sleeves, which she had not been able to finish, was missing in
his shirt.

"Now I may speak!" she said. "I am innocent!"

And the people, who had seen what had taken place, bowed before
her as before a saint; but she sank insensible into her brothers' arms,
overcome by all the excitement, anxiety, and grief she had gone through.

"Yes, she is innocent!" said the eldest brother; and now he related
everything that had happened, and while he spoke a perfume as from
millions of roses filled the air, for every log in the pile had taken root and
put forth branches till they formed a fragrant hedge, broad and high,
with red roses, above which bloomed a white, bright flower that shone
like a star. This the king plucked and placed in Elisa's bosoin when
she awoke with peace and happiness in her heart.

And all the church bells began ringing of themselves, and the birds
came flying into the town in great flocks. Such a wedding procession as
that which returned to the palace no king had ever seen.

WHAT THE OLD MAN DOES IS
ALWAYS RIGHT

THE FARMER CHANGED HIS HdRSK EoR A COW
OF ROTTEN APPLES.

DOWN lO A BAG

WHAT THE OLD MAN DOES IS ALWAYS RIGHT

I WILL now tell you a story which I heard when I was a little lad, and
every time I have thought of it since it seems to become more and
more delightful, for it is with stories as with many people — they
become more and more delightful the older thev grow ; and that is so
pleasant.

You have been in the country, of course. You have seen a real old
farm-house with thatched roof, where moss and grass grow of themselves ;
there is a stork's nest on the ridge of the roof, for one cannot do without
the stork. The walls are crooked and the windows low ; only one of them
can be opened ; the baking-oven projects far into the room, and the elder
bush leans over the hurdle, where there is a little pool of water with a

285

286 WHAT THE OLD MAN DOES

duck and some ducklings under the knotty willow tree. And then there
is a yard dog, which barks at everybody.

There was just such a farm-house out in the country, and in it lived an
old couple, a farmer and his wife. Although they did not possess much,
there was one of their belongings which they thought they could do with-
out, and that was a horse which managed to live upon the grass that
grew in the ditch beside the highroad. The old man used to ride it
to town, and the neighbors borrowed it, and for this they rendered
him services in return ; but the old couple thought it would be more ser-
viceable for them to sell the horse, or change it for something or other
which would be more useful to them. But what should it be ?

" You understand that best, father," said the woman ; " there is a fair in
Copenhagen now ; ride there and get money for the horse, or change it
for something good. What you do is always right, so ride to the fair."

And she tied his neckerchief for him, for she understood that better
than he; she tied it in a double bow and made him look quite smart.
Then she brushed his hat with her flat hand and gave him a hearty kiss,
and so he set out on the horse which was to be sold or changed. Yes, her
old man understood that all right.

The sun shone hotly; there were no clouds to be seen. The road was
dusty, for a number of people were on the way to the fair, either driving,
riding, or walking. The heat from the sun was terrible, and there was
no shelter to be found on the way.

Just then a man came along the road, driving a cow to the fiir. The
cow was as tine a creature as any cow could be.

" She is sure to give good milk," thought the farmer ; " it would be a
good thing if I could get her in exchange for the horse."

"I say, you with the cow!" he shouted; "we two ought to have a
talk. You see, a horse costs more than a cow, as you know, but that does
not matter. I have more use for the cow; shall we change?"

"All right," said the man with the cow ; and so they changed animals.

The farmer had now done his business, and he might just as well have
turned back; but since he had made up his mind to go to the fair, he
would go there, if only to look on, and so he set out with his cow. Both
he and the cow walked at a brisk pace, and soon they came up to a man
who was driving a sheep. It was a fine sheep, in good condition and with
plenty of wool on its back.

" I should like to have it," thought the farmer. " There would be
enough grass for it on the sides of the road, and in the winter we could
keep it in the room with us. It would really be better for me to keep a
sheep than a cow. Shall we changer"

Yes, the man with the sheep would not mind that, and so they changed
animals, and the farmer set out with his sheep along the highroad.
Over by the stile he saw a man with a big goose under his arm.

SHALL \VK HAVE A BET?" SAID THE ENGLISHMEN TO THE FARMER.
"WE HAVE GOLD BY THE BARREL!"

IS ALWAYS RIGHT 289

" That is a big bird you have there," said the farmer; "it has a lot ot'
feathers and plenty ot fat. She would look well in our little pool at
home. That would be something for mother to save up her parings for.
She has often said: ' If only we had a goose!' Now she can get it and
she shall have it. Will you change with me? I give you the sheep for
the goose and my thanks into the bargain."

Yes, the man was quite willing, and so they changed animals, and the
farmer got the goose. He was close to the town and the road was getting
more and more crowded. It swarmed with people and cattle. They
walked along the road and in the ditch alongside it, and right up into the
tt)ll-keeper's potato-field, where his hen was tied up so that she should not
lose herself if she took fright and wanted to run away. She was a bob-
tailed hen, and stood winking with one eye, but looked in good condition.
"Cluck, cluck!" she said. What she meant by it I cannot say, but the
farmer, when he saw her, thought: "She is the finest hen I have ever seen.
She is finer than the parson's brood hen. I should like to have her. A
hen can always find a grain or two. She can almost keep herself I think
it would be a good thing it I could get it for the goose."

" Shall we change?" he asked. " Change! " said the toll-keeper ; "yes,
that would n't be a bad thing," and so they changed animals and the toll-
keeper got the goose and the farmer got the hen.

He had now got through a good deal of business on his wav to town.
It was warm and he was beginning to feel tired. He wanted a dram and
a mouthful of bread. He had now arrived at the inn, and he was just
about to enter it when the potman, who was coming out, ran up against
him in the doorway, carrying a bagful of something on his back.

"What have you got there?" asked the farmer.

"Rotten apples," answered the potman ; "a whole sackful for the pigs."

"That 's a terrible lot. I should like mother to see this sight. Last
year we had only one apple on the old tree by the turf-shed. That apple
was to be kept, and it was left on the cupboard till it went bad. ' It 's
always a sign of prosperity,' mother said. Now, here she could see plentv
of prosperity. Yes, I would like her to see it."

"Well, what will you give?" asked the potman.

"Give? I '11 give you my hen for it," and so he gave him the hen
for the apples and went into the inn right up to the bar. The bag of
apples he placed against the stove, but he did not notice that it was lighted.
There were many strangers in the room — horse-dealers, cattle-dealers, and
two Englishmen. The latter are generally so rich that their pockets are
bursting with gold money and they are always making bets. Now you
shall hear.

"Hiss — s — s! hiss — s — s!" What noise was that near the stove? The
apples were beginning to frizzle.

"What 's that?" they all asked. Well, they soon got to know, as

290

WHAT THE OLD MAX DOES

well as the whole stor\' about the horse, which had been changed for the
cow and so on down to the rotten apples.

"Well, your old woman will give it you when you get home," said
the Englishmen; "there will be a row in the house."

" She '11 give me kisses, not kicks," said the farmer; " mother will say
that what the old man does is the right thing."

"Shall we have a bet?" they said; "we have gold by the barrel. A
hundred pounds to a hundredweight."

tvlsb \..L . ?A1LJ IHh "LlMA.S ; ■• IHANk V< if, MY OWN HUSBAND,"
AND SHE KISSED HIM RIGHT ON THE MOUTH.

"That will fill a bushel," said the farmer; "I can only fill it with
apples, but I will throw in mvself and the old woman. That 's piling up
the measure, I should say."

" Done! We agree," they said, and so the bet was made.

The innkeeper's carriage was brought out, and the Englishmen and the
farmer got into it, taking with them the bag of rotten apples, and so they
arrived at the farmer's house.

"Good morning, mother."

" The same to vou, father."

" Well, I have changed the horse."

"Ah, vou know what vou are about," said the woman, and put her
arm round his waist, forgetting both the strangers and the bag.

"I changed the horse for a cow."

IS ALWAYS RIGHT 291

"Heaven be praised for the milk we shall get !" said the woman;
" now we can have milk, butter, and cheese on the table. That was well
done."

"Yes, but I changed the cow tor a sheep."

"Ah, that s better still," said the woman. "You are always very
thoughtful. We have just enough of grass for a sheep. Now we can have
sheep's milk, and sheep's cheese, and woolen stockings, and even woolen
shirts. The cow could not give us that; her hairs are not good for
anvthing. \^'ell, vou are a thoughtful man!"

"But I changed the sheep for a goose!"

" Shall we, then, reallv have goose for Michaelmas this year, father
dear? You alwavs think of pleasing me. It 's so very kind of you ! The
goose we can keep in tether and let her get still fatter for Michaelmas."

"But I have changed the goose for a hen," said the man.

"A hen! Well, that was a good exchange," said the woman; "the hen
lays eggs and hatches them; we shall have a regular poultry -yard — ^_just
what I have been wishing for so long."

"Yes, but I changed the hen for a bag of rotten apples."

"\^'ell, now I must kiss you!" said the woman. "Thank you,
mv own husband; I have got something to tell you. \\'hen you were
gone I thought of making a nice little dish for you, a savory omelet
with chives. So I went over to the schoolmistress's, where I know they
have chives. I asked her to lend me some. ' Lend vou ? ' she said.
'Nothing grows in our garden, not even a rotten apple,' which I could
lend her. Now I can lend her ten — aye, a bagful ! Well, it is great
fun, father!" and she kissed him right on the mouth.

"That 's what I like!" said both the Englishmen. "Always going
down hill, and still be just as content. That 's worth the money!" and
so they paid a hundredweight oi' gold to the farmer who got kisses and
no kicks.

Yes, it is alwavs best that a wife should maintain that her husband is
the wisest, and that what he does is the right thing.

Well, this is the storv I heard when I was a little lad, and now you
have heard it too, and know that what the old man does is alwavs right.

THE OLD HOUSE

__._.. 'il^';^!'' '. V"' -"^ '"r:^ i^

ROUND THE CORNER IN THE NEXT STREET STOOD AN OLD, OLD HOUSE,

THE OLD HOUSE

ROUND the corner in the next street stood an old, old house ; it was
almost three hundred years old, as any one might read on the
beam, where the date was carved out, together with hyacinths and
branches ot hop vine; there were whole verses spelled as in olden days, and
over the windows were carved faces making all sorts of grimaces. One
story projected considerably over the other, and just under the roof was a
leaden gutter with a dragon's head; the rain-water should have run out of
its mouth, but it ran out of its stomach, for there was a hole in the
gutter.

All the other houses in the street were quite new and fresh, with large
window-panes and smooth walls. One could see they did not want to
have anything to do with the old house. They were no doubt thinking:
" How long is that ramshackle thing going to stand there as a disgrace to
the street.? And the bow-window projects so far into the street that no
one can see from our windows what is going on in that direction ; the
door-steps are as broad as the staircase of a palace and as high as the stairs

295

296 THE OLD HOUSE

of a church tower. The iron railing looks like the gate of an old family
vault, and has brass knobs as well. It makes one feel quite ashamed."

Just opposite were also some new and fresh-looking houses, and they
were of the same opinion as the others, but here at the window of one
of them sat a little boy with fresh, rosy cheeks and clear, bright eyes.
He liked the old house best of all, both by sunshine and by moonlight,
and when he looked over at the wall where the plaster had fallen otf,
he would sit and imagine the most wonderful pictures of what the street
had looked like in former days, with steps, bow-windows, aad pointed
gables; he could see soldiers with halberds, and gutters and spouts that
looked like dragons and serpents. That was certainly a house worth
looking at ! Over there lived an old man who wore shag trousers,
a coat with large brass buttons, and a wig which any one could see was
a real one. Every morning an old man came to the house to clean the
rooms and go errands, otherwise the old man in the shag trousers was
quite alone in the old house. Sometimes he would come to the windows
and look out, when the little boy would nod to him, and the old man
nodded in return, and thus they were acquainted and became friends,
although they had never spoken to each other ; but that was of no
consequence.

The little boy heard his parents say: "The old man over there is very
well off, but he must be terribly lonely."

Next Sunday the little boy wrapped up something in a piece of paper,
went down to the gate, and when the man who went errands came past
he said to him, "Here ! will you give this to the old man over there from
me ? I have two tin soldiers, and this is one of them ; he shall have it,
for I know he is so terribly lonely."

And the old man looked quite pleased, nodded his head, and carried
the tin soldier across to the old house. Afterward a message came asking
if the little boy would not like to come across himself on a visit ; and this
he got permission from his parents to do, and thus it was he came to
enter the old house.

And the brass knobs on the railing leading up the steps shone much
brighter than usual ; one would think they had been polished in honor of
the visit, and it seemed as if the trumpeters standing on tulips which
were carved on the door were blowing with all their might, their cheeks
looking much rounder than usual. They blew: " Taratantarra ! the little
boy is coming! taratantarra!" — and then the door was opened. The
whole of the hall was hung with old portraits — knights in armor and
ladies in silk gowns; the armor rattled and the silk gowns rustled. And
then came some more steps which led up, and then a few steps which led
down, and then one came to a balcony which was in rather a rickety
condition with large holes and long crevices, through all of which grass
and leaves were growing, for the wall and the whole of the balcony which

THE OLD HOUSE 299

projected from the house into the yard were covered with so much foUage
that it looked hke a garden, but it was only a balcony. Old flower-pots
with faces and asses' ears stood round about, and the flowers grew just as
they pleased. In one pot with carnations the sprouts were hanging all
over the sides, and seemed plainly to say :

"The breeze has patted us, the sun has kissed us and promised us a
little flower on Sunday — a little flower on Sunday."

And so the little boy came into a room where the walls were covered
with pigskin on which flowers were stamped in gold.

''Gilding soon may perish,
But pigskin forever will flourish,"
said the walls.

Round the room stood chairs with high backs and arms on both sides,
all beautifully carved. "Sit down, sit down!" they said. "Ugh, how I
am creaking! I suppose I shall get rheumatism, just like the old cup-
board. Rheumatism in the back, ugh!"

And then the little boy came into the parlor with the bow- window,
where the old man was sitting.

"Thank you for the tin soldier, my little friend," said the old man.
"And thanks for coming over to see me."

"Thanks, thanks!" or "Creak, creak!" groaned all the furniture;
there was so much ot it that the various pieces got into each other's way
in trying to see the little boy.

And in the middle of the wall hung a picture of a beautiful lady, quite
young and cheerful in appearance, but dressed like people in the olden
times with powdered hair and stiff" clothes. She said neither "Thanks"
nor "Creak," but looked with her mild eyes at the little boy, who at once
asked the old man, "Where have you got her from?"

"From the old-furniture dealer round the corner," said the old man.
" Many pictures are hanging there which no one knows or cares anything
about, because the persons are all buried, but many years ago I knew this
lady; she has now been dead and gone half a century."

And below the picture, under glass, hung a bouquet of withered
flowers; they also seemed to be half a century old, so old did they look.
And the pendulum of the big clock went to and fro, and the hand went
round, and everything in the room began to look still older, but they did
not seem to notice it.

"They say at home," said the little boy, "that you are so terribly
lonely."

"Well," was the answer, "old memories, and what they can carry
with them, come and visit me, and now you have also come! I am very
comfortable."

And then he took from the shelf a book with pictures; there were

300 THE OLD HOUSE

great long processions with the most wonderful carriages, which one does
not see nowadays, with soldiers dressed like the knave of clubs and
citizens with flying banners; the tailors had one with a pair of shears
supported by two lions, and the shoemakers had one without a boot, but
with an eagle that had two heads, as the shoemakers must have everything
so arranged that thev can sav, " Here is a pair." Yes, it was a wonderful
picture-book !

And the old man went into the other room to fetch sweetmeats, apples,
and nuts; it was really very pleasant in the old house.

"I cannot stand it," said the tin soldier, who stood on the chest of
drawers; "it is so lonely and dull here. When one has been accustomed
to family life one cannot get used to this state of things. I cannot stand
it ! The day itself is long enough, but the evening is still longer. It is
not at all like your house, where your father and mother were always
talking so pleasantly together, and where you and all the other dear
children were making such a delightful noise. How lonelv the old man
is here! Do you think he gets any kisses? Do you think he gets any
kind looks or a Christmas tree? He '11 get nothing, except a funeral.
I cannot stand it!"

"You must not take things so sadly," said the little boy. "I think
it is lovely here ; and, besides, old memories and what they can carry with
them come and visit you."

"But I don't see them, and I don't know them," said the tin soldier.
" I can't stand it ! "

"But you must!" said the little boy.

And the old man came back with the pleasantest of faces, with the
most lovely sweetmeats, apples, and nuts; and then the little boy thought
no more of the tin soldier.

The little bov went home happy and delighted ; days and weeks passed
by, and the nodding went on to and from the old house, and so the little
boy went over there again.

And the carved trumpeters blew their " Taratantarra ! Here is the
little boy! Taratantarra!" And the swords and armor on the pictures
of the old knights rattled, and the silk gowns rustled, the pigskin talked,
and the old chairs had rheumatics in their back and said, " Ugh ! " It was
just like the first occasion, for over there one day or one hour was Just like
another.

"I cannot stand it !" said the tin soldier; " I have wept tears of tin!
It is really too melancholy here. Rather let me go to the wars and lose
my arms and legs! That would be a change, at any rate. I cannot stand
it ! Now I know what it is to receive visits from one's old memories and
what they can carry with them. I have had visits from mine, and I
can tell you it 's no pleasure in the long run ; I was just on the point
of jumping from the chest of drawers. I saw all of you in the house

THE EVENING A CARRIAGE STOPPED AT THE DOOR, INTO WHICH THEY PUT
THE OLD man's COFFIN.

THE OLD HOUSE 303

opposite as plainly as if you had been really here; it was that Sunday
morning — vou know which I mean. All you children were standing
in front of the table singing the hymn you sing every morning; you were
standing devotedly with folded hands, and your father and mother were
just as solemn. Then the door was opened and your little sister Maria,
who is n't two years old yet, and who always will dance when she hears
music or singing, no matter what kind, was brought into the room, —
which ought not to have been done, — and then she began to dance, but
she could not keep the right time, for the music was too slow, and then
she stood first on one leg and bent her head right forward, and then on
the other leg with her head in the same position, but she could not get
into right time. You all looked very serious, although it was difficult
enough to keep from laughing, but I laughed inwardly till I fell down
from the table and got a bump which I still have, for it was n't right of
me to laugh. All of it stands again vividly before me, as well as
everything else I have gone through ; and those must be the old memories
and what they can carry with them. Tell me if you still sing on Sun-
days. And tell me something about little Maria. And how is my
comrade, the other tin soldier? Ah, he is really happy! I cannot stand
it any longer."

"But you have been given away as a present," said the little boy;
"you must remain where you are; don't you understand that.?"

And the old man came in with a drawer, in which there were many
things to look at: there was "the white house," and "the balsam-box,"
and old playing-cards, so large and richly gilt as one never sees nowa-
days. And many other drawers were opened. Later on the old man
opened the piano. It was one of those with a landscape on the inside of
the lid. He sat down to play on it, hut it was very much out of tune, and
then he hummed a song.

"Yes, she could sing that," he said, and nodded to the portrait he had
bought of the old-furniture dealer, and the old man's eyes shone brightly.

" I want to go to the wars! I want to go to the wars!" cried the tin
soldier as loud as he could, and threw himself down on the floor.

What had become of him .? Both the old man and the little boy
searched for him, but he was lost and gone. "I shall find him," said the
old man, but he never found him. The flooring was so open and full of
holes that the tin soldier had fallen through one of the chinks, and there he
lay in an open grave.

And the day passed, and the little boy went home ; and the week
passed, and many more weeks passed. The windows were quite frozen
over, and the little boy had to sit and breathe on the panes to get a peep-
hole through which he could look over at the old house. The snow had
covered up all the ornaments and inscriptions and the steps were full of
snow, just as if there was no one at home.

304 THE OLD HOUSE

Neither was there any one at home, for the old man was dead.

In the evening a carriage stopped at the door, into which thev put his
coffin. He was to be laid out at some place in the country before being
buried. And so he was driven away, but there was no one to follow him;
for all his friends were dead. The little boy kissed his hand after the
coffin as the carriage drove away.

Some days later the old house was sold by auction. From his window
the little boy could see how they carried away the old knights and the old
ladies, the flower-pots with the long ears, the old chairs and ancient cup-
boards. Some things went one way and some another way. Her portrait,
which the old man had bought at the old-furniture dealer's, came back to
him again, and there it remained, for no one knew her any more, and no
one cared tor the old picture.

In the spring the house itself was pulled down, for it was a tumble-
down shanty, people said. One could see from the street right into the
parlor with the pigskin on the walls, which was slashed and torn in all
directions; and the green foliage on the balcony hung in wild disorder
round the falling beams. And then the ground was cleared. "What a
good riddance ! " said the neighbors.

And a tine house was built, with large windows and white, smooth
walls ; but in front ot it, on the site where the old house had really stood,
a small garden was laid out, and up against the walls of the neighboring
house grew wild vines. Before the garden was a large iron railing with an
iron gate, which looked quite stately. People stopped before it and looked
through the railings. The sparrows hung by the score on to the vine and
chattered away to each other as fast as they could, but it was not about
the old house, for they could not remember that. So many years had
passed that the little boy had grown into a man, and had proved himself
to be a tine fellow whom his parents might well be proud of. He had
just been married and had moved with his little wife into this house with
the garden round it. He was now standing by her while she was planting
a wild flower which she considered so pretty. She planted it with her
little hands and pressed the soil up against it with her fingers. Ah, what
was that ? She had pricked herself There was something sharp sticking
up out of the soft soil.

Only think ! It was the tin soldier, the one that was lost in the old
man's house, and had been tumbling about between the timbers and the
rubbish, and finally had been buried in the ground, where he had been
lying for many years.

And the young wife dried the soldier, first with a green leat and then
with her soft handkerchief, which was so delicately perfumed. It seemed
to the tin soldier as if he came out of a trance.

THE OLD HOUSE

305

" Let me see him," said the young man, with a smile and a shake of
the head. " Well, I don't suppose it can be he, but I remember an
adventure I had with a tin soldier when I was a little boy." And so he
told his wife about the old house and the old man, and about the tin
soldier which he had sent across to him because he was so terribly lonely.
And he told it exactly as it had happened, so that the young wife had
tears in her eves over the story of the old house and the old man.

" It may be that it is the same tin soldier," she said; " I should like
to keep it and remember all you have told me. But you must show me the
old man's grave."

"I don't know where it is," he said, " and no one knows. All his
friends were dead, nobody looked after it, and I was only a little boy."

"How terribly lonely he must have been!" she said.

"Terribly lonely!" said the tin soldier; "but it is delightful not to be
forgotten ! "

"Delightful!" something close by exclaimed, but nobody except the
tin soldier saw that it was a bit ot the pigskin hangings. All the gilding
had gone off it, so that it looked like wet soil ; but it had one opinion, and
that it expressed:

"Gilding soon may perish,
But pigskin will forever flourish."

But the tin soldier did not believe it.

THUMBELINE

IN THE MIDDLL OF THE FLOWER SAT A TINY LITTLE GIRL.

THUMBELINE

THERE was once upon a time a wonvan wln) wanted so much to
have a tiny child, but she did not know where she could get one,
so she went to an old witch and said to her : " I would like so very
much to have a little child! Will you tell me where I can get one?"

Oh, yes! that can easily be managed!" said the witch.

barleycorn, but it is not of the sort that grows in the farmers' fields or the
fowls get to eat. Put that into a fiower-pot, and then you will see
something! "

"Thank you!" said the woman, and gave the witch sixpence. She
then went home and planted the barleycorn, and immediately a large,
beautiful fiower grew up, which was quite like a tulip, but its petals were
tightly closed, just as it it were still a bud.

"What a beautiful Hower ! " said the woman, and kissed its lovely red
and yellow petals; but just as she kissed the flower, it gave a loud report
and opened its petals. It was a real tulip, — one could see that, — but in the
middle of the flower, on the green stamens, sat a tiny little girl, most deli-
cate and beautiful to look at. She was scarcely half the size of one's
thumb, and therefore she was called Thumbeline.

For a cradle she had a pretty, lacquered walnut shell, for mattresses
blue violet leaves, and lor a coverlet a rose leaf. There she slept at night,
but in the daytime she played about on the table where the woman had
put a plate with a wreath of flowers around it, their stalks reaching down
into the water. On this a large tulip leaf was floating about, and on this
Thumbeline sat and sailed from one side of the plate to the other. She
used two white horse-hairs to row with. It was a prettv sight! She
could also sing, and her song was so sweet and beautiful that nothing like
it had ever been heard before.

One night as she lay in her pretty bed an uglv toad jumped in through
the window, in which there was a broken pane. The toad, a very ugly,
big, and wet creature, jumped down on the table where Thumbeline lay
asleep under the red rose leaf.

"That would be a beautiful wife for my son!" said the toad, and so
she took the walnut shell in which Thumbeline was sleeping, and jumped
through the window down into the garden with her.

'7* 309

310

THUMBELINE

Through the garden
was marshy and muddy,

THE TOAD TOOK THL UALNUT SHELL
IN WHICH IHUMBELINK WAS

SLEEPINc;.

ran a broad stream ; near its banks the ground
and here the toad lived with her son. Ugh !
How ugly and, hideous he was, just like his
mother! "Croak, croak!" was all he could
say when he saw the lovely little girl in the
walnut shell.

" Don't talk so loud, or else she will wake
up," said the old toad; "she might easily .run
away from us, for she is as light as swan's-down.
We will put her in the stream on one of the
large leaves of the water-lily. It will be like
an island to her, for she is so small and light.
She cannot run away from there while w^ are
getting the best room readv under the marsh,
where you two shall settle down and keep
house."

Out in the stream there grew a great

many water-lilies, with the large green leaves

which appeared to be floating on the water.

The leaf which was farthest out was also the largest of all, and to this

the old toad swam out and put the walnut shell with Thumbelinc (."in it.

The tiny little creature awoke quite earlv next morning, and w hen
she saw where she was she began to cry most bitterly, for there was water
on all sides of the great green leaf, so that she could not get ashore.

The old toad was sitting down in the mud decorating her room with
rushes and the yellow brandy-bottle, for she wanted to make the place look
pretty for her new daughter-in-law. She then swam out with her ugly
son to the leaf where Thumbeline was standing; they had come to fetch
her pretty bed, which was to he placed in the bridal chamber before she
went there herself. The old toad courtesicd deeply in the water before
her and said: "Here is my

son ! He is going to be
your husband, and you two
will be very comfortable
down there in the mud!"

"Croak, croak!" was
all that her son could say.

They then took the
pretty little bed and swam
away with it ; but Thum-
beline sat quite alone on
the green leaf and cried,
for she did not want to
live with the ugly old toad

OLD TOAD COURTESIED TO THUMBKLINE AND SAID,
"HERE IS MV son! "

THUMBELINE

311

or have her hideous son for a husband. The small fishes which were
swimming about in the water must have seen the toad and heard what she
said, and so thev put their heads above the water, just to have a look at
the little girl. As soon as they saw how beautiful she was, they felt sorry
that she should have tt) go down to the ugly toad. No, that should
never happen. They assembled round the green stalk which supported
the leaf on which she stood, and gnawed it through with their teeth, so
that the leaf drifted down the stream, carrying Thumbeline along with it,
far away where the toad could not reach her.

Thumbeline sailed past many places, and the little birds who sat on the
bushes and saw her sang, "What a lovely little maiden!" The leaf
carried her farther and farther awav, and thus Thumbeline came to for-
eign lands.

A beautiful little white butterfly kept fluttering round about her, and
at last he settled down on the leaf, because he had taken such a fancy to
Thumbeline, who was also much pleased, for now the toad could not reach
her, and everything around her
where she sailed was so beautiful ;
the sun was shining on the water,
which glittered like the brightest
gold. She then took her girdle and
tied one end to the butterfly and the
other she fastened to the leaf, which
then glided onward much faster
with Thumbeline standing on it.

Just then a big cockchafer came
flying past and saw her; the next
moment he had caught hold of her
round her slender waist with his
claws and flew up with her into a
tree, while the green leaf floated
down the stream and the butterfly
flew with it, for he was fastened to
the leaf and could not get away.

Oh, how frightened poor Thumbeline was when the cockchafer flew
up into the tree with her ! But she was greatly distressed about the
beautiful white butterfly, whom she had tied fast to the leaf. If he could
not get away from it, he must starve to death. But the cockchafer did
not trouble himself about that. He sat down with her on the largest
green leaf on the tree, gave her the sweet part of a flower to eat, and told
her she was very beautiful, although she was not at all like a cockchafer.
Later on the other cockchafers who lived in the tree came to pay a visit
and to have a look at Thumbeline. The young lady cockchafers turned
up their feelers and said, "She has got onlv two legs. What a miserable

HE FLEW UP

312 THUMBELINE

thing ! " " She has no feelers," some said. " How thin her waist is 1 Fie !
she looks like a human being. How ugly she is!" said all the lady
cockchafers. And yet Thumbeline was very beautiful. That is what the
cockchafer who had caught her thought, but as all others said that she was
ugly, he at last also believed it, and would have nothing more to do with
her. She might go where she liked. They Aew down with her from
the tree and put her on a daisy, where she began to cry, because she was
so ugly that the cockchafers would not have her, and yet she was the most
beautiful being one could imagine, as delicate and tender as the loveliest
rose leaf.

Poor Thumbeline lived quite alone in the great forest all through the
summer. She plaited a bed with blades of grass for herself, and hung it
under a large burdock leaf to protect herself from the rain. She sucked
the honey from the flowers and drank the dew which she found on the
leaves every morning, and in this way the summer and the autumn passed ;
but now came the winter — the cold, long winter. All the birds who had
sung so beautifully to her Hew away, and the trees and the flowers began
to wither. The large burdock leaf under which she had lived shriveled
up and there was only a yellow, withered stalk left. She felt the cold
terribly, for her clothes were in tatters, and she herself was so tender and
small — poor Thumbeline ! — that she might easily freeze to death. It began
to snow, and every flake that fell on her was to her the same as a whole
shovelful would be w hen thrown over us, for we are great, big people,
and she was onlv an inch in height. She then w rapped herself in a dry
leaf, but it did not keep her warm, and she shivered with cold.

Just outside the forest she came to a large corn-held, but the corn had
been harvested long ago; only the bare, dry stubble was left on the frozen
ground. It looked to her like a big forest which she had to struggle
through. Oh, how she trembled with cold ! Then she came to the door
of a fleld-mouse's house. It was a little hole under the stubble, where the
field-mouse lived in comfort and ease. She had the whole parlor full of
corn, and had, besides, a nice kitchen and larder. Poor Thumbeline stood
at the door like any poor beggar-girl and asked ior a small piece of barlev-
corn, for she had not had any food for two days.

" Poor little creature!" said the field-mouse, who was really a kind old
creature, " come inside my warm room and have some food with mc. "

As she took a liking to Thumbeline, she said, "You may stop with
me this winter, but you must keep my room neat and clean, and tell me
stories, for I am very fond of them;" and Thumbeline did what the kind
old field-mouse asked her, and had a very pleasant time of it.

"We shall soon have visitors," said the field-mouse; "my neighbor
generally visits me once a week. He is even better off than I ; he has
large rooms and goes about in such a beautiful black, velvety fur coat.
If only you could get him for a husband, you would lie well provided

THUMBELINE

313

for. But he cannot see you. You will have to tell him all the prettiest
stories you know."

But Thumheline did not care for all this. She would not have the
neighbor, for he was a mole. He came on a visit in his black, velvety
fur coat. "He is very rich and very learned," said the field-mouse; "his
house is twenty times bigger than mine, and he possesses a great deal
of knowledge, but he does not like the sun and beautiful flowers. He
speaks contemptuously of them, for he has never seen them." Thumheline
had to sing, and she sang both "Cockchafer, i\y, fiy away" and "The
monk goes in the meadows," so that the mole fell in love with her all on
account of her beautiful voice, but he did not say anything, he was such
a prudent person.

He had just dug a long passage through the ground from his house to
theirs, and the field-mouse and Thumheline had permission to take their
walks there whenever they liked. But he asked them not to be atraid ot
the dead bird which lay in the passage. It must have died quite lately,
when the winter began, and had been buried just where the mole had dug
his passage.

The mole took a piece of decayed wood in his mouth, for this shines
like fire in the
dark, and went
before them,
lighting them
on their way
through the

long, dark pas-
sage. When
they came to
where the dead
bird lay, the
mole put his
broad nose up
against the roof
and pushed the
soil up, so that
he made a great
hole, through
which the day-
light could fall. In the middle of the \\oor lay a dead swallow, with his
beautiful wings firmly pressed to his sides, while his legs and the head
were drawn up under his feathers. The poor bird must have died of cold.
Thumheline was very sorry for this, for she loved little birds so much;
they had sung and twittered for her so beautifully all the summer. But
the nn)le pushed him aside with his short legs and said : " He won't sing

THE M(1LE HAD HUG A PASSAGE FROM HIS HOUSE '
MOUSE AND THUMBKLINE HAD PERMISSION TO I'.

ND THE FIELD-
ALKS THERE.

314 THUMBELINE

any more now. It must be a hard fate to be born a little bird. Heaven
be praised that none of my children have become that ! Such a bird has
nothing but his 'Tweet, tweet !' and must starve to death in the winter."

"Yes, you, who are a sensible person, may well say that," said the
held-mouse. " What does a bird get in return for all his ' Tweet, tweet '
when the winter comes? He has to starve and freeze, but perhaps that
is considered grand, too ! "

Thumbeline did not say anything, but when the other two turned away
from the bird, she bent down, pushed aside the feathers which covered his
head, and kissed his closed eyes. " Perhaps he is the bird who sang so
prettily to me during the summer," she thought. "How much pleasure
he gave me, the dear, pretty bird!"

The mole now stopped up the hole through which the sun shone, and
accompanied the ladies home. But Thumbeline could not sleep that
night, so she got up from her bed and plaited a large beautiful coverlet of
hay, which she carried down into the passage and wrapped round the dead
bird, and put some cotton-wool, which she had found in the tield-mouse's
room, on each side of the bird, so that it might keep him warm as he lav
on the cold ground.

"Good-by, you pretty little bird!" she said; "good-by, and thanks
for your beautiful song last summer, when all the trees were green and the
sun shone so warmly upon us." She then put her head close to the bird's
breast, but the next moment she was startled at hearing something beating
inside the bird. It was his heart. The bird was not dead; he lay in a
torpor, and now that he began to feel warm he soon revived. The swal-
lows always fly away to the hot countries in the autumn, but if any of
them are prevented from following the others, they will feel the cold so
much that they fall to the ground as if thev were dead, and the cold snow
covers them up where they fall.

Thumbeline was so frightened that she trembled all over, for the bird
was, of course, much bigger than she, who was only an inch long; but she
took courage, put the cotton-wool still closer round the poor swallow, and
brought a mint leaf that she had used as coverlet, and put it over the
bird's head.

The next night she again stole down to the bird, and he was then alive,
but so weak that he could open his eyes only a moment, when he saw
Thumbeline, who stood there with a piece of decayed wood in her hand,
for she had no other light.

"Many thanks, you pretty little child!" said the sick swallow; "I feel
so beautifully warm. I shall soon get back my strength and be able to
fly again out into the warm sunshine."

"Oh," she said, " it is so cold outside ! It is snowing and freezing. Stay
in your warm bed and I will nurse you."

She then brought the swallow some water in the petal of a flower.

THUMBELINE

315

and he drank it and told her how he had torn one of his wings in a
bramble-bush, and therefore could not fly as fast as the other swallows,
who were soon far on their way to the hot countries. He had at last
fallen to the ground, but he could not remember anything more, and did
not know in the least how he had got there.

The swallow remained down there the whole winter, and Thumbeline
was kind to him and came to love him very much. Neither the mole nor
the field-mouse knew anything about it, for they did not care in the least
for the poor swallow.

THE FIELD-MDUSE HIRED FOUR SPIDERS TO SPI>
CAME EVERY EVENING ON

AND WEAVE, AND THE MOLE
. VISIT.

As soon as the spring came and the sun began to warm the ground, the
swallow said good-by to Thumbeline, who opened the hole which the
mole had made in the ground above the passage. The sun shone in upon
them so brightly, and the swallow asked Thumbeline if she would not go
away with them. She could sit on his back, and they would fiy away
far into the green forest. But Thumbeline knew the old field-mouse
would be much grieved if she left her in this way.

"No, I cannot," said Thumbeline.

"Farewell, farewell, you kind and pretty girl!" said the swallow,
and flew out into the sunshine. Thumbeline stood looking after him,
and the tears came into her eyes, for she was very fond of the poor
swallow.

"Tweet, tweet!" sang the bird as he flew away into the green
forest.

Thumbeline was very sad at heart. She was not allowed to go out

316 THUMBELINE

into the warm sunshine. Besides, the corn that had been sown in the field
over the field-mouse's house had grown to a great height. It seemed
quite a thick forest to the poor little girl, who was only an inch high.

"You must begin and get your outfit ready this summer," said the
field-mouse to her; fi^r their neighbor, the tiresome mole in the black,
velvety fur coat had now asked for Thumbeline's hand. "You must have
both woolen and linen clothes. You must have things to wear and things
to lie upon when vou are the mole's wife."

Thumbeline had to spin on the distaff, and the field-mouse hired four
spiders to spin and weave day and night. Every evening the mole came
on a visit, and he was always saying that when the summer came to an
end the sun would not shine nearly so hot, while now it was baking the
earth almost to a hard stone. Yes, when the summer was over, then he
and Thumbeline should get married. But she was not at all contented,
for she did not care in the least for the tiresome mole. Every morning
when the sun rose, and every evening when it set, she stole out to the door,
and when the wind blew the corn aside, so that she could see the bright
sky above, she thought how light and beautiful it would be out there, and
wished so much that she ccndd see her dear swallow again. But he never
came back — he must have fiown far away into the beautiful green forest.

\\ hen the autumn came Thumbeline had the whole oi her outfit
ready.

" III four weeks the wedding will take place," said the field-mouse.
But rhumbeline cried, and said she would not have the tiresome old
mole.

" W'liat nonsense !" said the field-mouse ; "don't be obstinate, or I
shall bite you with my white tooth. Why, you will have a fine fellow
for a husband ! Even the queen has not a black, velvety fur coat like his !
His kitchen and his cellar are well stored. You ought to be thankful tt)
get him ! "

And so the wedding was to take place. The mole had already arrived
to fetch Thumbeline. She was to live with him far under the ground, and
would never be allowed to go out into the warm sunshine, for he did not
like it. The poor child was so distressed at the thought of having to say
farewell to the beautiful sun, which she, at any rate, had been allowed to
]ot)k at from the door-steps while she was with the field-mouse.

" Good-by, you bright sun ! " she said, and stretched her arms toward
it as she went a few steps away from the field-mouse's house, for the corn
had now been reaped and only the dry stubble was left. " Good-by,
good-by!" she said, and threw her little arms around a small red flower
close by her. " Give mv love to the dear swallow, if you should
see him."

Just then she heard the twittering of a bird over her head, and she
looked up; it was the swallow, who happened to be Hying past. He was

THUMBELINE

317

so pleased at seeing Thumbeline, who now told him how unwilling she
was to marry the ugly old mole, and that she would have to live far under
the ground, where the sun never shone. She could not help crving at the
thought of it.

"The cold winter is now approaching," said the swallow; "I am
going to fly away to the hot countries. Will you come with me? You
can sit on my back.
You need only tie
yourself fast with
your girdle, and then
we will fly away
from the ugly old
mole and his dark
room, tar away
over the mountains
to warmer climes,
w here the sun shines
more brightly than
here, where there is
always summer and
beautiful flowers.
Only fly with me,
sweet little Thum-
beline,— you who
saved my life when
I lay frozen in the
dark cellar under
the ground."

" Yes, I will go
with you," said
Thumbeline, and

seated herself on the bird's back with her teet on his outstretched wing, and
tied her girdle fast to one of his strongest feathers, and then the swallow
flew high up in the air over forests and lakes, high over the big mountains,
which are always covered with snow. And Thumbeline then began to
sufl^er from the cold, but she crept in under the bird's warm feathers and
only put out her little head to look at all the splendor below her.

And so they came to the hot countries. There the sun shone much
brighter than here, the sky was twice as lofty, and in the ditches and the
hedges grew the most lovely green and purple grapes. In the woods hung
lemons and oranges, and the air was fragrant with myrtle and mint, and
on the roads pretty children ran about, playing with big, gay butterflies.
Hut the swallow flew on still farther, and everything became more and more
beautiful. Under the magnificent green trees bv the blue sea stood a

THUMBELINE SEATED HERSELF ON THE SWALLDw's BACK, ANIl THEN THE
BIRD FLEW HIGH UP IN THE AIR WITH HER.

318 THUMBELINE

dazzling white marble palace of the olden times; the vines clustered round
its high pillars and on the top were a number of swallows' nests, and in
one of these lived the swallow who had carried Thumbeline.

"This is my home," said the swallow; "but if you vvill choose one of
the prettiest flowers which grow down there I will put you on it, and
you shall be as happy as you wish."

" How splendid ! " she said, and clapped her little hands.

Down in the garden lay a great white marble pillar which had fallen
to the ground and was broken in two places; but between the pieces grew
the most lovely white flowers. The swallow flew down with Thumbeline
and put her on one of the large petals of one of the flowers; but what a
surprise awaited her ! She saw a little man sitting in the middle of the
flower, so white and transparent, as if he had been made of glass, with
the most lovely golden crown on his head, and the most beautiful, clear
wings on his shoulders, while he himself was no bigger than Thumbeline.
He was the angel of the flower. In every flower there lived such a little
man or woman, but this one was the king of them all.

"Oh! How beautiful he is!" whispered Thumbeline to the swallow.
The little prince became greatly frightened at the swallow, tor he was, of
course, quite a gigantic creature compared to him, who was so small and
tender; but when he saw Thumbeline he became so pleased, for she was
the most beautiful girl he ever had seen. He therefore took ofi^ his
golden crown and placed it on her head, and asked her what her name
was, and if she would become his wife, and she should be queen over all
the flowers- He was indeed a husband for her, quite different to the son
of the toad and to the mole with the black, velvety fur coat. She there-
fore said "Yes" to the lovely prince, and out of every flower came a lady
and a cavalier so beautiful that it was a pleasure to look at them. All ot
them brought Thumbeline a present, but the best of them all was a pair
of lovely wings of a large white fly. These were fistened to Thumbeline's
back, and then she was able to fly from flower to flower. There was
much rejoicing, and the swallow sat up in his nest and sang to them as
well as he could, although at heart he was very sorry, for he was very
fond of Thumbeline and would have liked never to part from her.

" You must not be called Thumbeline," said the angel of the flower
to her; "it is an ugly name, and you are beautiful. We will call you
Maja."

" (iood-by, good-by ! " said the swallow, and he flew away from the hot
countries back to Denmark, where he had a little nest over the window in
the house where the man lives who can write fairy tales. To him he
sang, "Tweet, tweet !" and from him we have the whole story.

THE STORM SHIFTS THE
SIGN BOARDS

lOKM HAS NEVER RAGED IN OUR DAY.

THE STORM SHIFTS THE SIGN-BOARDS

IN the old days, when grandfather was quite a Uttle hoy and wore red
trousers and a red jacket, a scarf around his waist and a feather in his
cap (for that was the way in which httle boys were dressed in the
days of his childhood when they wore their best clothes) — at that time so
many things were different from what they are now. There were otten
grand sights in the streets which we do not see, for they have all been done

■S 321

322 THE STORM SHIFTS THE SIGN-BOARDS

away with, as they were getting so old-fashioned ; but it is delightful to
hear grandfather tell about them.

It must have been a great sight to see the shoemakers change their
signs when they moved into their new guild-hall.

On their silk banner, which was waving in the air, was painted a large
boot and an eagle with two heads; the youngest of the journeymen car-
ried the "cup of welcome" and the "casket" of their guild, and wore
flowing red and white ribbons on their shirt-sleeves; the older ones carried
drawn swords with a lemon stuck on the point. There was a full band of
music, and the finest of the instruments was the "bird," as grandfather
called the great pole with the half-moon at the top, and all kinds of jin-
gling gewgaws — quite Turkish music. It was lifted aloft and swung to
and fro, and it jingled and tinkled, and it hurt one's eyes to look at all the
gold and silver and brass on which the sun was shining.

In front of the procession ran a harlequin dressed in clothes made of
patches of every possible color, with a black face, and bells on his head
like a sledge-horse." He struck the people with his wand, which made a
loud noise without hurting them, and the people crushed against each
other in trying to get backward or forward ; little boys and girls tumbled
over one another and fell right into the gutter ; old women pushed their
way with their elbows, looked cross, and kept on scolding. Some laughed
and others talked; there were people on all the door-steps and in the
windows, and even on the roofs. The sun was shining brightly ; then it
began to rain a little also, but that was good for the farmers, and when
the people were thoroughly drenched the rain was a blessing to the country.

Ah, how grandfather could tell stories ! As a little boy he had seen
all these grand sights in their greatest splendor. The oldest journeyman
of the guild made a speech from the scaffolding where the sign was to be
hung up, and the speech was a versified one, just as if it had been poetry,
which it was ; in fact, there had been three people busy composing it, and
they had first drunk a whole bowl of punch in order to make the speech
really got>d. And the people shouted and cheered the speech, but they
shouted and cheered still more when the harlequin came on the scaffolding
and made faces at them. The buffoon was great at playing the fool, and
drank mead out of dram-glasses, which he threw among the people, who
caught them in the air.

Grandfather had one of these glasses, w hich the mason who mixed the
mortar had caught and presented to him. It was all very amusing, and
the sign on the new guild-hall was hung with flowers and foliage.

"Such a sight one never forgets, no matter how old one gets," said
grandfather ; nor did he forget it, although he had seen many other sights
and splendors, which he told us about. But what amused us most was to
hear him telling about the shifting of sign-boards in the big town where he
went to live.

THK PEOPLE SHOUTED AND CHEERED STILL MORE WHEN IHL HA
THE SCAFbOLDlNU AND .MADE !• M I >, AT IHEM.

THE STORM SHIFTS THE SIGN-BOARDS 325

Grandfather had remained there with his parents when he was a Uttle
boy ; he had never before seen the biggest town in the country. There
were so many people in the street that he thought they were going to
move the sign-boards, and there were a good many to move : a hundred
rooms could have been filled with pictures, if they had been hung indoors
instead of outside. Thus there were all sorts ot clothes painted on the
tailors' sign-boards : they could make shabbily dressed people into quite
grand folks; there were sign-boards outside the tobacco manufacturers' with
the most delightful little boys smoking cigars, just as in real life; there
were sign-boards on which were painted butter and salted herrings, parsons'
ruffs and coffins, with inscriptions and announcements of all kinds. One
could easily spend a whole day in going up and down the streets, looking
at the pictures till one got tired of it, and at the same time one could learn
what sort of people lived in those houses where they had hung out sign-
boards ; and, as grandfather said, it was a good thing, and very instructive
as well, to know who lived in all the houses in a big town.

But just as grandfather came to town what I am about to tell you
happened to the sign-boards. He has told me all about it himself, and he
was not chaffing me, as mother said he always did when he wanted to
"palm off" anything upon me ; he looked as if you could rely upon every
word he said.

The night he arrived in the big town the weather was the most
terrible one had ever read about in the papers — such weather as no one
within the memory of man had experienced. The air was filled with
tiles ; old palings were blown down ; there was even a wheelbarrow which
ran up the street just to save itself The wind howled in the air; it
whined and shook everything it came in contact with. It was indeed a
terrible storm. The water in the canals splashed over the sides; it did
not know what to do with itself. The storm swept over the town,
carrying the chimneys along with it. More than one of the noble old
church steeples had to lean over, and has never got straight since.

Outside the house of the old, respected captain of the fire brigade,
who always arrived at a fire with the last engine, stood a sentry-box.
The storm begrudged the captain this little box and blew it off its pivot.
It rolled down the street, and, strange to say, it righted itself and was left
standing outside the house of the foolish carpenter who had saved three
lives in the last fire. But the sentry-box did not give that a thought.

The barber's sign, the great brazen dish, was torn off and thrown right
into the window recess of the judge's, and it seemed almost as if it was
done out of malice, said the whole neighborhood, for they and the most
intimate friends of the judge's wife called her " the razor," she was so
sharp. She knew more about people than they knew themselves.

Then flew a sign-board with a dried codfish painted on it. It stuck
over the door of a house where there lived a man who wrote in a

326 THE STORM SHIFTS THE SIGN-BOARDS

newspaper. It was a foolish joke on the part of the storm. It did not
recollect that a newspaper writer is not at all to be triHed with. He is
king in his own paper and in his own opinion.

The weathercock flew across to the neighbor's roof opposite, and
there it stood, the very picture of blackest malice, said the neighbors.

The cooper's barrel got fixed under a sign, "Ladies' trimmings."

The bill of fare at the cookshop, which hung near the door in a heavy
frame, was pitched by the storm above the entrance of the theater, which
nobody went to. It was a funny bill: "Horse-radish soup and stuffed
cabbage." But then plenty of people came to the theater.

The fox-skin of the furridr, the honorable sign of his trade, was shifted
to the bell-pull of a young man who always went to early church service,
and who looked like a shut-down umbrella, and was always searching for
truth, and was a "model young man," as his aunt said.

The inscription, "Institute for Higher Education," was blown over to
the billiard club, and the institute itself got another sign-board in exchange:
"Children reared here by the bottle." This was not at all witty, only
rude ; but the storm had done it, and one cannot control the storm.

It was a terrible night, and in the morning — just fancy! — nearly all
the sign-boards in the town had been shifted, and at some places it was
done with such malice that grandfather would not talk about it; but, I
noticed, he laughed to himself, and it is possible he was up to some
mischief.

The unft)rtunate inhabitants of the big town, and especially the
strangers, went wrong altogether when they tried to find people. Nor
could they do otherwise, since they went by the sign-boards. Some people
were going to a very solemn meeting of elders, where most important
things were to be settled, and they found themselves in a noisy boys'
school, where the boys were just about to jump on the tables.

There were people who mistook the church for the theater, and that
was really too terrible !

Such a storm has never raged in our days. It is only grandfiither who
has experienced such a one, and that was when he was quite a little bt)y.
Such a storm may not occur in our time, but perhaps it may in that
of our grandchildren, and we can only hope and pray that they will keep
indoors while the storm is shifting the sign-boards.

THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE
CHIMNEY-SWEEP

CLOSE TO THEM STOOD ANOTHER FIGURE, AN OLD CHINAMAN WHO COULD
NOD HIS HEAD.

' 1^4 H

THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE
CHIMNEY-SWEEP

HAVE you ever seen a really old wooden cupboard, quite black with
age, and covered with carvings of scrolls and foliage ? Just such
a cupboard was standing in a parlor; it had been left to the family
by the great-grandmother. It was ornamented with carved roses and
tulips from top to bottom, and between these quaint ornaments protruded
small stags' heads and antlers, but in the middle of the cupboard was
carved the full-length figure ot a man which made one grin to look at
it; he, at any rate, was grinning, for it could not be called laughing. He
had goat's legs, small horns on his head, and a long beard. The children
always called him "Major-and-lieutenant-general-war-commander-sergeant
of the Billy-goat-legs," which was a difficult name to pronounce, besides
being a title which many did not receive; but to get him carved must
have been a difficult piece of work.

But there he was, and he was always looking toward the table under
the mirror, for there stood a lovely little shepherdess of porcelain. Her
shoes were gilt and her dress was fastened up with a rose, and then she
had a gilt hat and shepherd's crook. She was really lovely. Close to
her stood a little chimney-sweep, black as coal, but also made of porcelain.
He was quite as clean and nice as anybody. As to his being a sweep, that

329

330 THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE

was of course because he had been made to represent one; the workmen
might just as well have made a prince of him at once.

There he stood with his ladder, looking quite handsome, with a face
as white and red as a girl's, which, of course, was really a mistake, for he
might as well have been a little blackened. He was standing close to the
shepherdess. Thev had both been placed where they stood, and having
been so placed, they became engaged, for they suited each other very well,
and they were both young people and were made of the same porcelain,
and equally liable to be broken.

Close to them stood another figure which was three times as big as
thev; it was an old Chinaman who could nod his head. He was also
made of porcelain, and used to say that he was grandfather ot the little
shepherdess; but I don't think he could prove that. He would, however,
insist that he had some influence over her, and that was the reason he had
been nodding to the Major-and-lieutenant-general-war-commander-sergeant
of the Billy-goat-legs, who was courting the little shepherdess.

"Now there is a husband for you," said the old Chinaman; " a man,
who, I think, is actually made of mahogany. He can make you Lady-
major-and-lieutenant-general-war-commander-sergeant of the Billy-goat-
legs. He has got the whole cupboard full of silver, besides what he has
in his secret drawers."

" I don't want to go into the dark cupboard," said the little shepherdess.
"I have heard say he has eleven porcelain wives in there!"

"Then you can be the twelfth," said the Chinaman. "To-night, as
soon as the old cupboard begins to creak, you two shall be married, as
true as I am a Chinaman ! " And then he nodded his head and fell
asleep.

But the little shepherdess wept and looked at the beloved of her heart,
the porcelain chimney-sweep.

"I think I must ask von," she said, "to go with me out into the wide
world, for we cannot remain here."

"I will do everything you want me to do," said the little sweep. " Let
us go at once. I think I shall be able to make a living by my profession."

"I wish we were safely down from the table," she said. "I shall not
be happy till we are out in the wide world."

And he comforted her and showed her how she could place her little
foot on the carved edges and the gilt foliage down along the leg of the
table, and he also made use of his ladder; but when they looked in the
direction of the old cupboard everything seemed to be in a state of
confusion. All the carved stags stretched their heads still farther out,
rearing their antlers aloft and twisting their heads. The Major-and-lieu-
tenant-general-war-commander-sergeant of the Billy-goat-legs jumped into
the air and shouted across to the old Chinaman : " They are running
away! they are running away!"

CHIMNEY-SWEEP 331

This frightened them, and they jumped up into the drawer of the
window seat.

Here were three or four packs of cards which were not complete, and
a small toy theater which had been put up as well as could be; a play was
being acted, and all the queens of diamonds and hearts, clubs, and spades
were sitting in the first row, fanning themselves with their tulips, and
behind them stood all the knaves, showing they had heads both at top
and bottom, as playing-cards generally have. The play was about two
lovers who were not allowed to marry, and the shepherdess cried because
it was just like her own story.

" I cannot bear it," she said ; " I must get out of this drawer." But
when they got down on the floor and looked up at the table, the old
Chinaman had awakened and all his body was rocking to and fro, although
the bottom of him was a heavy lump.

"The old Chinaman is coming!" cried the little shepherdess, and fell
down on her porcelain knees, so great was her distress.

" I have an idea," said the sweep; "let us creep into the great jar with
potpourri, which stands in the corner; there we can lie on roses and
lavender, and throw salt in his eyes when he comes."

"That will not do," she said; "besides, I know that the old Chinaman
and the potpourri jar were once engaged, and there always remains a little
kindly feeling between those who have stood in this relation to one
another. No, there is no help for it; we must go out into the wide
world."

"Have you really courage to go with me out into the wide world?"
asked the sweep. " Have you considered how big it is, and that we can
never come back here again?"

"Yes, I have," she said.

And the sweep looked fixedly at her, and then said: "My way lies
through the chimnev. Have you really courage to creep with me through
the stove, both through the drum and the pipe? Then we get into the
chimnev, and there I know my way well. We shall climb up so high
that they cannot reach us, and at the top there is a hole leading out to the
wide world."

And he led her to the door of the stove. " It looks dark in there,"
she said, but she went with him for all that, both through the drum of
the stove and through the pipe, where it was pitch dark.

"Now we are in the chimney," he said; "and see! look at the
beautiful star that is shining just above us! "

And it was a real star in the sky which shone down on them, as if it
wanted to show them the way. And they crawled and crept on, and a
terrible way it was, so high, so very high ; but he lifted her and supported
her. He held her and showed her the best places where she should put
her little porcelain feet, and thus thev reached right up to the top of

2>2>1

THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE

the chimney, where they sat down, for they were really tired, and no
wonder.

The sky with all its stars was just above their heads, and helow them
lay all the roofs of the city. They could see far around them, tar out into
the wide world. The poor shepherdess had never thought it was anything

AROUND THEM, KAK

INTO THE WIDE WORLD

like this. She leaned her little head against her chimney-sweep, and cried
till the gilding was washed off her girdle.

"Oh, this is too much for me!" she said; "I cannot bear it. The
world is too big. I wish I were back again in the little table under the
mirror. I shall never be happy until I am there again. Now that I
have followed you out into the wide world, you may as well go back with
me if you care at all for me."

And the sweep tried to reason with her; he spoke of the old China-
man and the maior-and-lieutenant-general-war-conimander-sergeant ot the

CHIMNEY-SWEEP 333

Billy-goat-legs, but she sohhcd st) bitterly and kissed her little chimney-
sweep, so that he ccuild not do anything but humor her, although it was
wrong.

And so, with great difficulty, they crawled down the chimney again ;
they crept through the drum and the pipe, which was anything but
pleasant, and at last they stood inside the dark stove. Thev stopped
behind the door to listen to what was going on in the room. They
peeped out — alas! there, in the middle of the floor, lay the old China-
man. He had fallen down from the table when he tried to run after
them, and lay there broken into three pieces. The whole of his back had
come off in one piece, and the head had rolled over into a corner. The
major-and-lieutenant-general- war-commander-sergeant of the Billy-goat-
legs stood where he had always stood, and seemed to be buried in thought.

"It is terrible," said the little shepherdess; "my old grandfather is
broken to pieces and it is all our fault! I shall never survive it!" And
then she wrung her tiny little hands.

"He can still be mended," said the sweep. "He can very well be
riveted — only take things quietly. If they cement his back and give him
a strong rivet in the neck, he will be as good as new, and be able to say a
good many unpleasant things to us."

"Do you think so," she said. And they climbed up again on to the
table where they had stood before.

"Well, this is as far as we have got," said the chimney-sweep; "we
might as well have saved ourselves all the trouble."

"If only we had old grandfather mended!" said the shepherdess.
"Would it be very expensive.?"

And he was mended. The people in the house had his back cemented
and he got a strong rivet in the neck, and he was as good as new, but he
could no longer nod.

"You seem to have become rather proud since you broke in pieces,"
said the major-and-lieutenaut-general-war-commander-sergeant of the
Billy-goat-legs; "but I don't think it is anything to be so proud of Shall
I have her, or shall I not?"

And the chimney-sweep and the little shepherdess looked so pathetically
at the old Chinaman. They were afraid he would nod his assent; but he
could not, and besides it was unpleasant to him always to have to tell
strangers that he had a rivet in his neck, and so the little porcelain people
were left to themselves, and they blessed the rivet in grandfather's neck
and loved one another till they broke to pieces.

DADDY DUSTMAN

tOLE LUKOIEj

NOBODY IN THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS SO MANY
STORIES AS DADDY DUSTMAN.

DADDY DUSTMAN

(OLE LUKOIEm

THERE is nobody in all the world who knows so many stories as
Daddy Dnstinan. And he does know how to tell stories.
When it is getting near bedtime, and the children are sitting
comfortably round the table or on their little footstools, in comes Daddy
Dustman. He comes so softly up the stairs, for he walks in his stocking-
feet. He opens the door quietly, and, whist 1 he squirts sweet milk into
their eyes, so little, oh, so very little, but always enough to prevent them
from keeping their eyes open, and that 's why they cannot see him. He
steals up behind them, breathes gently on their necks, and this makes their
heads heavy. But it does not hurt them, for Daddy Dustman means well

I Ole Liikoie (literally Olaf the Eye-shutter) is the Dutch equivalent for the legendary character known

to English children as " The Dustman.'"

337

338

DADDY DUSTMAN

by the children. He only wants them to he quiet, and the best way to do
this is to get them to bed. They must be quiet, so that he can tell them
stories.

As soon as the children are asleep, Daddy Dustman sits down on the
bed. He is nicely dressed; his coat is of silk, but it is impossible to say
what color it is, for it looks green, red, or blue, according to how he turns
round. He carries an umbrella under each arm. One of them, with
pictures inside, he spreads over the good children, and then they dream the
most beautiful stories the whole night ; but the other umbrella, which has
no pictures, he puts over the naughty children, who fall into a heavv sleep,
and awake in the morning without having dreamed anything.

We shall now hear how Daddy Dustman came every evening for a
whole week to a little boy, whose name was Hjalmar, and what he told
him. There are altogether seven stories, for there are seven days in the
week.

MONDAY

" Just listen ! " said Daddy Dustman in the evening, when he had got
Hjahnar into bed. "I will make the room pretty!" And all the flowers
in the tiower-pots became large trees, which stretched their long branches
under the ceiling and along the walls, so that the whole room looked like
the most lovely bower. The branches were covered with flowers, all of
which were much prettier than any rose, and just as fragrant ; and if any
one had wanted to eat them, he would have found them sweeter than
jam. The fruits glittered like gold, and there were buns cram full of
raisins; it was simply wonderful ! But just at that moment there came a
terrible wail from the drawer in the table, in which Hjalmar kept his
lesson-books.

"What 's the matter now.?" asked Daddy Dustman, and went over to
the table and opened the drawer. It was the slate, which felt oppressed
and crushed because a wrong figure had got into the sum, so that it was

'V 339

340 DADDY DUSTMAN

nearly falling to pieces. The slate-pencil jumped up and tugged at its
string as if it were a little dog; it wanted to put the sum right, but could
not. And Hjalmar's copy-book began to wail ; it was really terrible to
listen to. Down along each page stood all the capital letters, each with
the small letter at its side, — quite a long row of letters down the page,
which had to be copied ; and by their side stood again some letters which
thought thev were just like them, — for Hjalmar had written these letters;
but they all leaned over to one side, as if thev had stumbled over the
pencil-line upon which they were to stand.

"Look here! This is the way you should hold yourselves up," said
the printed letters; "see, this way, — with a smart flourish."

"Oh, yes; we should be so glad to do it," said Hjalmar's letters, "hut
we cannot, — we don't feel well."

"Then you must have a powder," said Daddy Dustman.

"Oh, no!" cried the letters, and then they stood so straight and erect
that it was a pleasure to look at them.

"Well, we shall have no time for stories now," said Daddy Dustman;
" I shall have to put them through their paces. Left, right ! Left, right ! "
and so he went on drilling the letters till they stood as upright and as fine-
looking as anv of the printed ones. But when Daddy Dustman had gone
and Hjalmar looked at them in the morning thev were as bad as ever.

TUESDAY

As soon as Hjalmar was in bed, Daddy Dustman touched all the pieces
of furniture in the room with his magic squirt, and they began at once to
talk and chatter. All of them talked about themselves, with the exception
of the spittoon, who was annoyed and remained silent, because they were
so conceited as only to talk about themselves, only to think about them-
selves, and had no thoughts for the spittoon, which stood in all humility
in the corner and let itself be spat into.

Over the chest of drawers hung a large painting in a gilt frame. It
represented a landscape with lofty old trees, flowers in the grass, and a big
lake, from which flowed a river that passed round behind the forest, and
past many castles far out into the open ocean.

Daddy Dustman touched the picture with his magic squirt, and the
birds in it began to sing, the branches of the trees moved to and fro, and
the clouds drifted across the sky. One could see their shadows passing
over the landscape.

341

342 DADDY DUSTMAN

Daddy Dustman now lifted little Hjalmar up into the frame, and
Hjalmar put his feet into the painting, right on the high grass, and there
he stood, the sun shining down upon him through the branches of the
trees. He ran to the lake and sat down in a little boat which was lying
there. It was painted red and white and the sails shone like silver, while
six swans, all with golden crowns round their necks and a bright blue star
on their foreheads, towed the boat past the green forests, where the trees
talked about robbers and witches, and the flowers about the little elves and
about what the butterflies had told them.

The most beautiful hshes with silver and gold scales swam after the
boat. Now and then thev would make a spring out of the water and,
with a splash, fall back into it, while the birds, red and blue, large and
small, flew after the boat in two long rows. The gnats danced and the
cockchafers sang " Boom, boom !" All wanted to follow Hjalmar and all
had a story to tell.

What a splendid sail ! In some places the forests were thick and dark,
in others they looked like the most beautiful gardens, with sunshine and
flowers. Along the shore lay large palaces of glass and marble, and on the
balconies stood princesses, all of whom were little girls that Hjalmar knew
well and had plaved with. They held out to him in their hands the nicest
sugar-pigs that any sweet-stuff^ woman ever sold, and Hjalmar, as he sailed,
seized hold of one end of the sugar-pigs, while the princesses held tightly
on to the other, so that all got a piece, the princesses the smallest, and
Hjalmar all the biggest. At every palace little princes kept guard. They
presented arms with golden swords, and let it rain with^ raisins and tin
soldiers. They must be real princes !

At one moment Hjalmar sailed through forests, at another through
large halls or through the middle of a town. He also passed through the
town where his nurse lived, the nurse who had been so fond of him, and she
nodded and beckoned to him, while she sang the pretty verse she herself
had written and sent to Hjalmar:

•• I think of you both long and oft.

Hjalmar. my own. my posy !
I "ve kissed your pretty cheeks so soft.

Forehead, and lips so rosy.
I heard your lispings long ago;

Since then we 've said good-by.
The good Lord bless you here below.

My angel from on high."

And all the birds joined in, the flowers danced on their stalks, and the
old trees nodded, just as if Daddy Dustman were telling stories to them
also.

WEDNESDAY

Dear, oh, dear! How the rain did pour down ! Hjalmar could hear
it in his sleep, and when Daddy Dustman opened the window the water
had reached right up to the window-sill ; outside was a great sea, and a
tine ship was lying close to the house.

"Will you have a sail, little Hjalmar?" asked Daddy Dustman.
" During the night you can see many foreign lands, and be back here
again in the morning."

All at once Hjalmar, dressed in his best clothes, stood on the deck of
the ship, and the weather immediately became fine They sailed through
the streets and turned round the corner by the church, and then they had
the great ocean before them. They sailed on till at last no land could be
seen, and they saw a fiock of storks, who also had left their home and
were on their way to the hot countries. The storks were flying one
behind the other, and had already been flying such a long distance that

■y* 343

344 DADDY DUSTMAN

one of them was so tired his wings could not carry him any longer ;
he was the last in the line, and before long he was a long way behind the
others. x\t last he began to sink lower and lower on his outstretched
wings. He flapped his wings once or twice, but all in vain ; his legs
were now touching the rigging of the ship, and then he glided down
along the sail, and plump ! there he stood on the deck.

The ship's boy took him and put him into the hen-coop with the
fowls, ducks, and turkeys. The poor stork felt quite out of place in this
company.

" What 's that thing.?" said all the fowls.

And the turkey-cock puffed himself out as much as he could and asked
the stork who he was, while the ducks waddled backwards, pushing one
another aside and crying, "quack, quack!"

Then the stork began telling them about Africa and how warm it was
there, about the pyramids, and the ostrich, who raced like a wild horse
across the desert ; but the ducks did not understand what he said, and
pushed against one another, saying : " Let 's agree about one thing. He
is a fool I "

"Of course he is a fool ! " said the turkey-cock, and went on gobbling.
The stork then became silent and thought of his home in Africa.

"Those are thin, handsome legs of yours!" said the turkey-cock.
"How much a yard?"

"Quack, quack, quack!" grinned all the ducks, but the stork pretended
not to hear anything.

"You might laugh as well," said the turkey-cock to him, "for it was
very wittily said ; or, perhaps, it was not high enough for you. Alas ! he
is not very versatile. Let us continue to amuse one another all by our-
selves." And the fowls clucked and the ducks quacked : "Quick, quack!
Quick, quack!" How terribly amusing they all thought it was.

But Hjalmar went to the hen-coop, opened the door, and called the
stork, who jumped out on the deck to him. He had now rested himselt,
and, as he spread out his wings to fly away to the hot countries, it seemed
as if he nodded to Hjalmar to thank him, while the fowls clucked and the
ducks quacked and the turkey-cock became quite red in his face.

"To-morrow we shall make soup of you all!" said Hjalmar; and then
he awoke and found himself lying in his little bed. That was a wonderful
journey which Daddy Dustman had let him take that night.

THURSDAY

"Look here!" said Daddy Dustman, "hut don't he atraid ! Here's a
Httle mouse." And he held out his hand to him with the pretty httle
creature. "She has come to invite you to a wedding. There are two
httle mice who are going to get married to-night. They live down under
the floor of your mother's larder, and they say it is such a nice place!"

" But how shall I he ahle to get through the little mouse-hole in the
floor?" asked Hjalmar.

"Leave that to me," said Daddy Dustman, "I will make you small
enough !" And then he touched Hjalmar with his magic squirt, who at
once hegan to grow less and less, and at last he was no bigger than one's
finger. "You can now horrow the tin soldier's clothes, which I think
will fit you. It looks so smart to wear a uniform when you go to a
party ! "

345

346

DADDY DUSTMAN

"Yes, of course ! " said Hjalmar; and in a moment he was dressed like
the smartest tin soldier.

"Won't you be good enough to take a seat in your mother's thimble,"
said the little mouse, "and I shall have the honor to drive you !"

"Goodness gracious! Are you yourself, Madam, going to have all
this trouble?" said Hjalmar, as they drove otf to the wedding of the mice.

First they came into a long passage under the floor, which was hardly
of sufficient height to allow any one in a thimble to drive through it. The
whole of the passage was illuminated with touchwood.

"Is n't there a delicious smell here r" said the mouse who was driving
Hjalmar ; " the whole passage has been rubbed with bacon-rind. Nothing
could be more delicious!"

They now arrived in the room where the wedding was to take place.
On the right hand side stood all the little lady-mice, whispering and
tittering, just as if they were making fun of one another, and on the left
stood all the gentlemen-mice, stroking their mustaches with their paws ;
but in the middle of the floor could be seen the bridal couple, standing in
a hollowed-out cheese-rind, kissing each other most lovingly before the
eyes of everybody, for thev were now engaged, and were just going to be
married.

More and more guests were arriving, till they were nearly treading
each other to death. The bridal couple were standing in the middle of
the doorway, so that one could hardly get in or out. The whole of the
room had been rubbed over with bacon-rind, just like the passage; this
was all the refreshments there was to be, but as dessert a pea was shown
round, in which a little mouse belonging to the family had bitten the
name of the bride and the bridegroom — that is to sav, the first letters of
their names ; it was something quite out of the common.

All the mice said it was a beautiful wedding, and that the conversation
had been most delightful.

And so Hjalmar drove home again ; he had, no doubt, been in very
grand company, but he had certainly had to make himself very small, and
get into the tin soldier's unifoi-m.

FRIDAY

" It is incredible how many old people there are who want to get hold
of me," said Daddy Dustman; "especially those who have done some-
thing wicked. 'Good little Daddy,' they say to me, 'we cannot close our
eyes, and so we lie awake all the night and see all our wicked deeds, like
horrible little imps, sitting on the edge of the bed and squirting hot water
over us. Do come and drive them away so that we can get a good night's
rest,' and then, with a deep sigh, they add: 'We should like so much to
pay you. Good night, Daddy. The money is lying in the window.'
But I don't do this for money," said Daddy Dustman.

"What shall we do this evening?" asked Hjalmar.

"Well, I don't know if you would like to go to a wedding again
to-night — a different kind from the one you went to yesterday. Your
sister's big dolly, the one who looks like a man, and who is called Herman,
is going to be married to the doll we call Bertha. Besides, it is her
birthday, and there will be a lot of presents."

"Yes, I know all about that," said Hjalmar; "whenever my sister
wants new clothes for her dolls she always lets them have birthday parties
or weddings. That has happened at least a hundred times."

347

348 DADDY DUSTMAN

"Yes, and the wedding to-night will be the hundred and first, and
when one hundred and one is reached then everything comes to an end,
and therefore this will be a grand affair. Just look! "

And Hjalmar looked at the table : there stood the little cardboard
house with lights in all the windows, and all the tin soldiers outside
presenting arms. The bride and the bridegroom sat on the floor leaning
against the leg of the table, both looking quite thoughtful, which was
only reasonable, while Daddy Dustman, dressed in grandmother's black skirt,
performed the marriage ceremony. When it was over, all the furniture
in the room joined in singing the following pretty song, which was written
by the lead-pencil, and set to the tune of the military tattoo:

" Our song shall burst into the room ;
The bridal pair shall hear it — boom!
They stand erect, straight as a broom,
Fresh as a new glove, how they bloom !
Hurrah, hurrah, for bride and groom !
Our song must be loud, piercing storm, wind, and gloom ! "'

And now came the presents ; but the bride and bridegroom had requested
that no eatable should be sent, as they had sufficient of love to live upon.

"Shall we go somewhere in the country or go abroad?" asked the
bridegroom. The swallow, who had traveled a great deal, and the old
farm-hen, who had hatched five broods of chickens, were consulted on the
subject. The swallow told about lovely countries, where the air was mild
and the mountains a color of which we have no idea.

"But you don't find our spring cabbage there," said the hen. "I
went into the country one summer with all my chickens. We had a gravel-
pit there, all to ourselves, where we could go and scratch up the ground all
day; and we also had leave to go into a garden where there was spring cab-
bage. Oh, how green it was ! I cannot think of anything more delightful."

"But one cabbage stalk looks very much like another," said the
swallow; "and then you have often such bad weather here."

" Yes, but one gets accustomed to that," said the hen.

"But you have so much frost and cold in this country."

"That 's good for the cabbages," said the hen. "Besides, we have
warm weather as well. One summer it was so hot one could scarcely
breathe. And then we have none of the poisonous creatures that are found
abroad. And we are free from robbers. He is a wretch who does n 't think
our country the most beautiful. He does n't deserve to be allowed to live
here," said the hen, with tears in her eyes. " I, too, have traveled. I once
drove over fifty miles in a tub ! There is no pleasure at all in traveling."

'Yes, the hen is a sensible person," said Bertha, the bride. " Nor do
I like traveling over mountains either. It is always up and down. No,
let us be off to the gravel-pit and take our walks in the cabbage garden."

And that settled it.

SATURDAY

" Shall I have any stories to-night r " said little Hjalmar, as soon as
Daddy Dustman had got him into bed.

" We have no time for that to-night," said Daddy, and opened the
pretty umbrella over him; "look at these Chinamen." And the whole
umbrella looked like a great Chinese bowl with blue trees and pointed
bridges, with tiny Chinamen on them, who stood nodding their heads.
"We must have the whole world brightened up by to-morrow," said
Daddy, " for it is a holv day, it is Sunday. I have to go over to the
church tower to see if 'the little brownies are polishing the bells, so that
they may sound all the more beautiful. I have to go into the fields to see
if the wind has blown the dust off the grass and the flowers, and then
there is the biggest job of all — I have to take down all the stars and
polish them. I put them all in mv apron ; but they must first be num-
bered, as well as the holes into which thev fit, so that they can be put

349

350 DADDY DUSTMAN

back again in their right places. Otherwise they would not stick fast, and
we should have too many falling stars, for thev would be tumbling down
one after another."

"I say, Mr. Dustman," said an old portrait, which was hanging on the
wall in Hjalmar's bedroom, " I am Hjalmar's great-grandfather. I am
much obliged to you for telling the boy stories, but you must not confuse
his ideas of things. The stars cannot be taken down and polished. The
stars are planets, like our globe, and that 's just the beauty of them."

"Thank you, old great-grandfather," said Daddy Dustman; "I am
much obliged to you. You are the head of the family — an ' old head,'
in fact. But I am older than vi)u. I am an old heathen. The Romans
and the Greeks called me the Dream God. I have always visited the best
of families and do so still. I understand how to associate both with rich
and poor. And now you can tell stories yourself," said Daddv Dustman,
and went away, taking the umbrella with him.

" So, one is not allowed to speak his mind any more," said the old
portrait.

And then Hjalm^r awoke.

I^ " fi^

-w^r Mv^^

SUNDAY

"Good evening," said Daddy Dustman, and Hjalmar nodded; but rirst
he went over and turned the great-grandfather's portrait to the wall, so
that it should not begin talking as it did yesterday.

"Now you must tell me some stories about 'the live green peas that
lived in a shell,' and ' Cocky Locky, who made love to Henny Penny,' and
about 'the darning-needle who was so conceited that she thought she was
a sewing-needle.' "

"One may have too much of a good thing," said Daddy Dustman.
"You know I would rather show you something. I will now show you
my brother. His name is also Daddy Dustman, but he never comes to
any one more than once, and when he comes, he takes you on his horse
and tells you stories. He knows only two. The one is so wonderfully
beautiful that no one in the world can imagine anything more beautiful,

351

352

DADDY DUSTMAN

and the other is so grim and terrible — well, it is impossible to describe
it." And Daddy Dustman lifted little Hjalmar up into the window, and
said: "There you see mv brother, the other Daddy Dustman. They also
call him Death. You see, he does not look as bad as in the picture-
books, where he is represented as a skeleton. No, he has silver embroi-
dery on his coat. It is the most lovely hussar's uniform. A cloak of
black velvet flies behind him over the horse. Do you see how he gallops
along.?"

And Hjalmar saw how this Daddy Dustman rode off, taking both
young and old people with him on the horse. Some he placed in front, and
some at the back of him, but he always asked first of all, " What about
your mark-book.?" "Very good," they all replied. "Well, let me see for
myself," he said; and then they had to show him the book, and all those
who had "very good" and "excellent" were put in front of him, and
were told the beautiful story. But those who had "tolerably good" and
"indifferent" had to sit behind and listen to the horrible storv. They
trembled and cried, and wanted to jump off the horse, but they could not,
for they had suddenly grown fast to it.

" But death is a most pleasant Daddy Dustma
not afraid of him."

"Nor should you be," said Daddy Dustman;
a good mark-book."

"Well, there is something instructive in that
of the great-grandfather; "there is some use, after all
mind," and so he was satisfied.

This is the story of Daddy Dustman. He can now tell you some
more stories himself this eveninj^.

said Hjalmar; "I am

;)nly take care to have

muttered the portrait
speaking one's

LITTLE GLAUS AND BIG GLAUS

WERi; TWO MKN IN A IDWN WHO HAD THK SAMK NAMK.

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS

THERE were two men in ii town who both had the same name;
both oi them were called C'laus, but one owned four horses, and
the other only one. In order to distinguish the one from the
other, he who had four horses was called Big Claus, and he who had only
one horse Little C'laus. Now you shall hear how the two fared, for this
is a true story.

During the whole of the week Little Claus had to plow for Big Claus,
and lend him his one horse ; but then Big Claus helped him in re-
turn with all four — but only once a week, and that was on a Sunday.
Houp-la ! how Little Claus cracked his whip over all the five horses; they
were now as good as his own, for that one day ! The sun shone brightly
and all the bells in the church tower were ringing; the people were dressed
in their best, and, with their prayer-books under their arms, were on their
way to hear the clergyman preach. They looked at Little Claus, who was
plowing with the five horses, and he was so pleased that he cracked his
whip and called out: "Gee up, all my horses!"

"You must not sav that," said Big Claus, "only one of the horses is
yours ! "

But when some people again were passing on their way to church
Little Claus forgot that he must not say it, and shouted: "Gee up, all my
horses ! "

"Now you '11 just have to stop that," said Big Claus; "for if you sav
it once again I '11 strike your horse on the forehead, so that he drops down
dead on the spot, and it will be all over with him !"

^-° 355

356

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS

ITTLE CLAUS CLIMBED UP TO THE TOP OF THE SHEH,
WHENCE HE COULD SEE INTO THE ROOM.

" I shall not say it any
nn)re ! " said Little Claus ; but
when people came by and they
nodded " Good day " to him,
he became so pleased, and
thought it looked so grand to
have five horses to plow his
field, that he cracked his whip
and shouted : "Gee up, all my
horses ! "

" I '11 gee up vour horses ! "
said Big Claus, and took a
hammer and struck Little
C'laus's only horse on the fore-
head, so that it fell down dead.

" Oh dear, now I have no
horse at all ! " said Little Claus,
and began to cry. Afterward
he flayed the horse, took its
hide, dried it well in the wind,
and put it in a sack which he
took on hi> back and set out
to town to sell the hide.

He had a long way to go,
and had to pass through a great,
gloomy forest, when a terrible
storm arose ; he lost his way,
and before he got on the right
road again, the evening came
on, and it was too far to reach
the town or his home before
the night set in.

Close to the road he saw a
large tarm-housc, the shutters
ight shone out at the top. " I

Littl

outside the windows were closed, but th

suppose I can get permission to stop here for the night," thought

Claus, and went up to the door and knocked.

The farmer's wife opened the door, but when she heard wliat he
wanted, she said he must go his way ; her husband was not at home and
she could not receive any strangers.

"Well, then, I must lie down outside," said Little Claus, and the farmer's
wife shut the door upon him.

Close by stood a large haystack, and between it and the house was a
small shed with a flat thatched root.

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS 357

"I can lie up there! " said Little Claus, when he saw the roof; "that
will make a fine bed. I hope the stork won't fly down and hite mv legs."
For he saw a stork on the rool, where it had its nest.

Little Claus now climbed up to the top of the shed, where he lav and
turned to and fro to make it comfortable to lie on.

The wooden shutters before the windows did not fit at the top, st) he
could look straight into the room.

There was a long table laid out with wine, a joint oi' meat, and such
a tine fish. The farmer's wife and the deacon were seated at the table,
and no one else ; and she poured out the wine and helped him to some fish,
as it was a favorite dish of his.

" If one could only get some of it," said Little Claus, and stretched his
head toward the windows. Goodness gracious ! what a splendid cake he
saw standing on the table ! Yes, that was a feast indeed !

Just then he heard some one riding along the highroad toward the
house. It was the woman's husband who was returning home.

He was a good man, but he had the remarkable failing that he never
could bear to see a deacon. If he caught sight of a deacon he would fly
into a violent rage. This was the reason that the deacon had gone to the
house to wish the woman good day, because he knew that the husband
was not at home ; and the good woman had put all the best food she had
before him. When they heard the husband coming they became fright-
ened, and the woman asked the deacon to creep into a large empty chest
which stood over in the corner. This he did, for he knew, of course,
that the poor husband could not bear to see a deacon. The woman
quickly put away all the nice food and wine into her baking oven, for if
her husband should see it he would be sure to ask what it meant.

"Ah, well !" sighed Little Claus up on the shed when he saw all the
food disappearing.

" Is there anv one up there r " asked the farmer, looking up at Little
Claus. " Why are vou lying there r \'ou had better come with me into
the parlor."

Little Claus then told him how he had lost his way, and asked if
he might stay there for the night. "Yes, of course," said the farmer;
" but flrst we must have something to eat."

The woman received them both very kindly, laid the cloth on a
long table, and put a large dish of porridge before them. The farmer
was hungry and ate with a good appetite, but Little Claus could not
help thinking of the nice fish and the cake that he knew were in the
oven.

Under the table at his feet lay his sack with the horse's hide, for we
know he had gone away from home to get it sold in town. The porridge
was not to his taste, and so he pressed the sack with his foot till the dried
hide began to creak quite loudly.

358 LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG CLAUS

"Hush! " said Little Claus to his sack, but he pressed it again at the
same time, so that it creaked louder than before.

"Whatever have you got in your sack?" asked the farmer.

" Oh, it 's a wizard," said Little Claus; "he says we ought not to eat
porridge. He has tilled the whole oven with meat and hsh and cake
for us."

"You don't say so ! " exclaimed the farmer ; and in all haste he opened
the oven door, where he saw all the nice food which his wife had hidden,
and which he believed the wizard in the bag had conjured up for them.
The woman dared not say anything, but put the things at once on the
table ; and so they both ate of the hsh and the joint and the cake. Little
Claus then again pressed the sack with his foot and made the hide creak.

"What does he say now?" asked the farmer.

"He says," said Little Claus, "that he has conjured three bottles of
wine for us, and that they also are' standing in the oven." The woman
had now to bring out the wine she had hidden, and the farmer drank and
became quite merry. Such a wizard as Little Claus had in his sack he
would very much like to possess.

"Can vou conjure up the devil as well r" asked the farmer. " I should
like to see him, for I feel so jolly now."

"Oh, yes," said Little Claus; "my wizard can do everything I tell him.
Is n't that so?" he asked, and pressed the sack till it creaked. " Can you
hear ? He says, ' Yes,' But the devil is so terrible to k>ok at that you may
not like to see him."

"Oh, I am not at all afraid. What do you think he looks like?"

"Oh, he looks exactlv like a deacon."

"Ugh ! " said the farmer, " that 's horrible ! You must know I can't
bear to see deacons. But it does n't matter now. I know it 's the devil,
and so I shall bear it all the better. My courage is up now, but he
must n't come too near me."

"I '11 tell the wizard," said Little Claus, pressing the sack and listening.

"What does he say ? "

" He says that you can go over and open the chest which stands in the
corner, and you '11 see the devil sitting moping there ; but you must keep
the lid down so that he does not slip out."

"Will you help me to keep it down?" said the farmer, and went over
to the chest in which the woman had hidden the real deacon, who sat
there, trembling with fear.

The farmer lifted the lid a little and peeped under it. " Ugh ! " he
cried, and sprang back. " Yes, I saw him, and he looks just like our
deacon ! Oh, it 's horrible ! "

After this they must have a drink ; and so they went on drinking till
far into the night.

"You must sell me that wizard," said the farmer. "Ask anything

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS 359

you like for him. I will give you a whole bushel of money for him at
once."

"No, I can't do that," said Little Claus. "Just fancy what use I can
make of this wizard ! "

"Oh, but I would so like to have him," said the farmer, and went on
begging.

"Well," said Little Claus at last, "since you have been so good to me
and given me shelter for the night, I sha'n't mind. You shall have the
wizard for a bushel of money, but it must be heaped-up measure."

"That you shall have," said the farmer; "but you must take that
chest with you as well. I won't have it another hour in my house. Who
knows if he isn't sitting in there still."

Little Claus gave the farmer his sack with the dried hide, and got a
whole bushel of money, and good measure, too, for it. The farmer even
made him a present of a large wheelbarrow to wheel awav the chest and
the money.

"Farewell," said Little Claus. And so he went off' with his monev
and the big chest, in which the deacon was still hiding.

On the other side of the forest was a broad, deep river, where the
water flowed so rapidly that one could scarcely swim against the current.
A big new bridge had been built across it, and when Little Claus stopped
in the middle of it he said quite loudly, so that the deacon in the chest
might hear it:

"Whatever shall I do with this silly chest? It is as heavy as if there
were stones in it. I shall be quite knocked up if I wheel it any longer.
I will throw it into the river, and if it sails home to mv place, it is all
well and good; and if it does n't, well, it is no matter."

He then took hold of the chest with one hand, and lifted it up a
little, as if he intended to plunge it into the water.

"No; stop, stop!" cried the deacon in the chest; "let me get outhrst."

"Oh," said Little Claus, pretending to be frightened; "he is still in
there, so I had better throw it into the river at once and drown him."

"No, no," cried the deacon; "I will give you a whole bushel of
money if you let me out."

"Oh, that 's another matter," said Little Claus, and opened the chest.
The deacon crept out as quicklv as he could, pushed the empty chest into
the water, and went off" to his house, where Little Claus got a whole
bushel of money, and with the one he had already received from the
farmer he had now his wheelbarrow full of money.

"Well, I have been rather well paid for that horse, I must say," he
said to himself when he got home to his own room, and turned out all
the money into a heap in the middle of the floor. " It will annoy Big
Claus when he gets to know how rich I have become through that one
horse of mine, but I sha'n't tell him exactly all about it."

360 LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS

He then sent a boy to Big Claus to borrow a bushel measure.

"What can he want it for, I wonder?" thought Big Claus, and he
smeared some tar under the bottom, so that something of whatever was to
be measured should stick, to it, which really happened, for when the
measure was returned to him there were three silver sixpences sticking
to it.

"What 's this?" said Big Claus, and ran off at once to Little Claus.
"Where have you got all that money from?"

"Oh, that 's what I got for the hide of mv horse. I sold it last
night."

"That was a good price, I must say," said Big Claus, and he ran
home, took an ax, killed ill his four ht)rses, dayed them, and drove to
town with the hides.

"Hides, hides! Who '11 buv hides-" he cried through the streets.

All the shoemakers and tanners came running, and asked ln)w much
he wanted for them.

"A bushel of money for each of them," said Big Claus.

"Are vou mad?" said they all ; "do you think we have money by the
bushel?" '

"Hides, hides! Who '11 buy hides?" he cried again, and all who
asked what the hides cost were told: "A bushel of money."

"He is making a fool of us," they all said; and the shoemakers took
their straps, and the tanners their leather aprons, and began beating Big
Claus.

"Hides, hides!" they shouted mockingly at him; "yes, we '11 give you
a hiding that will make your bones ache. Out of the town with him!"
they cried. And Big Claus had to take to his heels as fast as he could; he
had never had such a thrashing in his life.

"Well, Little Claus shall pay for this," he said when he came home.
"I '11 kill him for it."

But at Little Claus's house the old grandmother had died. She had
been rather cross and hard upon him, but still he was sorry. He took the
dead woman and put her in his warm bed, to see if she might not come to
life again. There she was to lie all night, while he sat over in the corner
and slept in a chair, as he had often done before.

As he sat there during the night the door opened, and in came Big
Claus with his ax; he knew where little Claus's bed was, and went
straight up to it and struck the dead grandmother on the forehead, think-
ing it was little Claus.

"There, now," he said; "you won't make a fool of me any more";
and so he went home again.

"He must be a bad, wicked man," said Little Claus, "to want to
kill me. It was a good thing for old granny that she was dead already,
else he would have taken her life."

-NKKEPER THREW THE MEAD RIGHT
FELL BACKWARD

0 THE DEAD WOMAN S FACE, AND SHE
THE CART.

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS 363

So he dressed his old grandmother in her Sunday clothes, borrowed a
horse from his neighbor, put it to the cart, and placed the old grand-
mother up against the back seat, so that she should not fall out when the
cart gave a jerk, and so they drove off through the wood.

At sunrise they came to a large inn, where Little Claus pulled up and
went in to get something to eat.

The innkeeper was very, very rich, and also a good man, hut with a
temper as hot as pepper.

"Good morning," he said to Little Claus; "you 've got early into your
Sunday clothes to-day."

"Yes," said Little Claus, "I am going to town with my old grand-
mother. She is sitting out there in the cart, and I can't get her to come
into the parlor. Won't you take her a glass of mead .? But you must talk
pretty loudly to her, for she is hard of hearing."

"Yes, that I will," said the innkeeper, and poured out a large glass of
mead, with which he went out to the dead grandmother, who had been
placed upright in the cart.

"Here 's a glass of mead from your son !" said the innkeeper. The
dead woman did not speak a word, but sat quite still.

"Don't you hear r" cried the innkeeper, as loud as he could. " Here 's
a glass oi mead from your son ! "

Once more he cried out the same, and again once more; but as she did
not move a muscle he flew into a passion, and threw the glass right in her
face, so that the mead ran down her nose, and she fell backward in the
cart, for she was only placed upright, and not tied fast to the cart.

" Hullo ! " cried Little Claus, as he rushed out at the door and seized
the innkeeper by the throat; "you have killed my grandmother ! Just
look, there is a great cut in her forehead."

"Oh, what a misfortune!" cried the innkeeper, wringing his hands;
"that all comes from my hasty temper! My dear Little Claus, I '11 give
a whole bushel of money, and I '11 bury your grandmother as if she were
my own. Only keep quiet, or else thev will cut off my head, and that is
so unpleasant ! "

So Little Claus got a whole bushel of money, and the innkeeper gave
the old grandmother a burial as if she had been his own.

As soon as Little Claus got home with all the money, he sent his boy
across to Big Claus to ask if he might have the loan of a bushel measure.

"What 's this ?" said Big Claus. "Did n't I kill him ? I must see to
this myself!" and so he went across with the measure to Little Claus.

"Where have you got all this money from .?" he asked, opening his eyes
wide at the sight of all that had now been added.

"It was my grandmother you killed, and not me!" said Little Claus;
"I have now sold her, and got a bushel of money for her."

"That was a good price, I must say!" said Big Claus, and hurried

364 LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS

home, took an ax, and killed his old grandmother without any loss of
time, put her into his cart, drove into the town to the apothecary's, and
asked him if he would buy a dead body.

"Who is it? and where did you get it from?" asked the apothecary.

"It is my grandmother!" said Big Claus. "I have killed her to sell
her for a bushel of money ! "

"Heaven preserve us!" said the apothecary. " \'ou must be raving
mad! Don't go on talking like that, else you '11 lose your head."

And then he told him plainly what a wicked deed he had done, and
what a bad man he was, and that he ought to be punished. Big Claus got
such a fright that he ran right out of the apothecary's shop, jumped into
his cart, whipped up his horse, and drove off furiously; but the apothecary
and all the people thought he was mad, and let him, therefore, drive
whither he would.

"You shall pay for this!" said Big Claus, when he had got out on the
highroad. "Yes, you shall pay for this, my Little Claus!" And as soon
as he came home he took the largest sack he could find, went across to
Little Claus, and said: "You have made a fool of me again! First I
killed my horses, then my old grandmother. It is all your fault, but you
shall never make a fool of me again!" And so he seized Little Claus
round the body and put him into his sack, threw it across his back, and
cried out to him: "Now I 'm going to drown you !"

It was a long way to go before he got to the river, and Little Claus
was no light weight to carry. The road passed close by the church, where
the organ was playing and the people were singing so beautifully. So
Big Claus put down his sack with Little Claus in it close to the church
door, and thought it might do him good to go in and listen to a hymn
before he went anv farther. Little Claus could not, of course, get out ot
the sack, and all the people were in church; so he went in.

"Oh dear! oh dear!" sighed Little Claus in the sack, as he turned
and twisted about in it, but it was not possible for him to get the string
undone. Just then an old cattle-drover, with snow-white hair and a large
staff in his hand, came past ; he was driving a whole herd of cows and
oxen before him, and they ran against the sack in which Little Claus was
sitting, and overturned it.

"Oh, dear !" sighed Little Claus. "I am so young, and yet I have to
go to heaven ! "

"And I, poor fellow !" said the drover, "I am so old, and yet I can't
get there ! "

"Open the sack!" cried Little Claus. "Creep into it instead ot me,
and you will soon get to heaven ! "

"Yes, that I will willingly do !" said the drover, opening the sack for
Little Claus, who jumped quickly out ot it.

"You will look after the cattle for me?" said the old man, and crept

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS 365

into the bag which Little Claus tied up and so went his way with all the
cows and oxen.

A little while after Big Claus came out of church and took the sack
on his back again ; he thought, however, it was much lighter, tor the old
drover was not half so heavy as Little Claus.

"How light he is to carry now !" he said. "Well, that 's because I
have been listening to the singing, I suppose!" So he went off to the
river, which was broad and deep at that place, threw the sack with the old
cattle-drover into the water and shouted after him, thinking of course it
was Little Claus in the sack :

"Now, then, you sha'n't make a fool of me any more !"

And so he went homeward; but when he came to where the cross-
roads met, he saw Little Claus, who was driving all his cattle before him.

"What 's this?" cried Big Claus. "Did n't I drown you ?"

"Yes, of course," said Little Claus; "you threw me into the river
scarcely half an hour ago."

"But where have you got all these tine cattle from?" asked Big
Claus.

"They are sea-cattle ! " cried Little Claus. "I '11 tell you all about
it. But I must thank you for drowning me. I am well off now ; I am
quite rich, I can tell you ! I was so frightened as I lay in the sack, and
the wind was whistling about my ears when you threw me from the
bridge down into the cold water. I sank at once to the bottom, but I did
not hurt myself, for down there grows the tinest, softest grass imaginable.
I fell right on this, and soon afterward the sack was opened. A most
beautiful maiden, in snow-white robes and with a green wreath in her wet
hair, took me by the hand and said : " Are you there. Little Claus ? Well,
here are some cattle for you to begin with, but a mile farther on up the
road a whole herd stands, which I will make you a present of."

" I now saw that the river was a big highway for the mermen down
there. They were walking and driving along the bottom, right out from
the sea up into the country where the river ends. It was very delightful ;
there were flowers and the freshest of grass, and the fish which swam about
in the water were stealing round about my ears just like the birds in the
air up here. What nice people there were down there, and what a lot of
cattle were grazing in the ditches and along the hedges! "

"But why did you come up to us again?" asked Big Claus. "I
should n't have done that if it was so nice down there."

"Well, you see," said Little Claus, "it was just a little trick of mine.
You heard me say that the mermaid told me that a mile farther along the
road, — and by the road, of course, she meant the river, for she can't get
away to any other place, — a whole herd of cattle was still waiting for me.
But I know the big windings the river makes, now here, now there ; it
would be a regular roundabout way. No, one makes a short cut when

366

LITTLE CLAUS AND BIG GLAUS

one can, and by coming up here on land and making right across for the
river again I shall save nearly two miles and get quicker to my sea-cattle."

"Well, you are a lucky fellow," said Big Claus. "Do you think I
shall get any sea-cattle if I go down to the bottom of the river ? "

"Yes, I should think so," said Little Claus; "but I can't carry you in
the sack as far as the river. You are too heavy for me. If you will walk
there yourself and then creep into the sack I '11 throw you in with the
greatest pleasure."

"Thank you," said Big Claus; "but if I don't get any sea-cattle when
I get down there I '11 give you a good thrashing, you may be sure ! "

"Oh, no! don't be so hard on me!" said Little Claus; and so they
went down to the river. When the cattle, which were thirsty, saw the
water they ran as fast as they could to drink.

"See what a hurry they are in," said Little Claus. " Thev are longing
to get down to the bottom again."

"Yes, but help me first," said Big Claus, "or else I '11 thrash you ! "
And so he crept into the big sack which was lying across the back ot one
of the oxen.

"Put a stone in with me, else I may not sink," said Big Claus.

"No fear of that," said Little Claus. Still he put a large stone into
the sack, tied the string tightly, and gave the sack a push. Plump ! down
fell Big Claus into the river, and sank at once to the bottom.

"I 'm afraid he won't hnd those cattle," said Little Claus, and so he
drove home what he had.

THE SHIRT COLLAR

THERE was once upon a time a stylish gentleman whose only goods
and chattels were a boot-jack and a comb ; but he had the finest
shirt collar in the world, and it is about this collar I am now going
to tell you a story. The collar was now old enough to think about getting
married, and then it happened that he and a garter met one day in the
same wash-tub.

"Well," said the collar, "I have never seen any one so slender and
elegant, so soft and neat, before. May I be permitted to ask your name r"

"I shall not tell you,"
said the garter.

"Where do you come
from ? " asked the collar.

But the garter was very
shy, and thought it was a
very strange question.

" You are a waistband,
I presume," said the collar;
" a kind of inside waist-
band. I can see you are
both useful and ornament-
al, my little lady."

"You must n't speak
to me," said the garter; " I
do not think I have given
you any encouragement."

"Oh, when one is as
encouragement enough."

" Don't come so near to me
masculine."

" Yes, I am quite a gentleman,'

beautiful

as you," said the collar, "that is
said the garter. " You look so

said the collar.

I posse

boot-

jack and a comb" (which, of course, was not true, as they belonged to his

master; but he was very fond of boasting).

"Do not come near me," said the garter; " I am not used to it."
"What a prude ! " said the collar, just as he was being taken out of the

wash-tub. He was next starched and hung across the chair in the sunshine,

369

370

THE SHIRT COLLAR

hot

was passed

and was then put on the ironing-board, when the
over him.

"Madam," said the collar, "little widow, I begin to feel quite warm.
I feel a change coming over me; I am quite losing my head; you are
burning a hole right through me! Ah! Will you be mine?"

"Rag!" said the iron, and passed proudly over the collar. She
imagined that she
was a steam-engine
going along the rail-
way, dragging car-
riages after her.

"Rag!" she re-
peated.

The collar was
a little frayed at
the edges, and so
the scissors were
brought out to cut
oft" the ragged ends.

"Oh," said the
collar, "you are a
your legs! I have nev
could do that."

"I know that!" said the scissors,

"Vou deserve to be a countess,"

premiere-danseuse, I presume. How you can stretch
er seen anything so beautiful ! No human being

said the collar. " I am a gentleman,
and all I possess is a boot-
jack and a comb. If only I
were a count ! "

" Is that meant as a pro-
posal ? " said the scissors
angrily, and gave the collar
such a nasty cut that he was
ruined forever.

" I must propose to the
comb," said the collar. "It
is really wonderful how well
your teeth are preserved, my
little lady. Have you never
thought of getting engaged?"

"Yes, of course!" said
the comb. " I am engaged
to the boot-jack."

"Engaged!" exclaimed the collar. N\)w there was no one left to
propose to, and so he looked with contempt upon courting and such like.

THE SHIRT COLLAR

371

A long time passed, and then the collar came into a bag and was sent
to the paper-mill. There was a grand company of rags, the fine ones in
a heap by themselves, and the common ones in another, as was only right.
They had all a lot to say, especially the collar ; he was a regular
braggart!

"I have had a terrible lot of sweethearts," said the collar; "I was
never left in peace. But I was quite a gentleman, you must know,
starched up to the nines ! I kept both a boot-jack and a comb, which I
never used. Vou should have seen me at the time when I was turned
down ! I shall never forget my first sweetheart ; she was a waistband,
so fine, so soft, so beautiful ; she threw herself into a wash-tub for my
sake. Then there was a widow, who was head and ears over in love with
me, but I left her to herself to remain in her weeds. Then there was a
premiere-danseuse ; she gave me the gash you see me with — she was a
fury ! My own comb was in love with me ; she lost all her teeth through
disappointed love. Yes, I have gone through a lot of such experiences.
Hut I am most sorry for the garter — the waistband I mean, who jumped
into the wash-tub. I have a great deal on my conscience; it is really
time I was made into white paper!"

And all the rags were made into paper ; the collar became the very
piece of white paper before me, on which this story is printed — all in
punishment for having boasted so dreadfully of what had never happened.
We ought to take warning by this, and try to behave better, for one never
knows what may happen ; we might find ourselves one day in the bag
with rags, and be made into white paper, and then have the whole story of
our life, even the most secret part of it, printed upon the paper, and have
to run about and tell it, just like the shirt collar.

THE LITTLE MERMAID

DOWN BKLOW THE SURFACE OF THE SEA LIVE THE MERMEN
AND THE MERMAIDS.

THE LITTLE MERMAID

FAR out at sea the water is as blue as the petals of the most beautiful
cornrtower, and as clear as the purest crystal, but it is very deep —
deeper than any cable can reach. Many church towers would
have to be placed one on the top ot another to reach from the bottom to
the surface ot the sea. Down there live the mermen and the mermaids.

Now you must not think that there is only the bare, white sandy
bottom down there. No, the most wonderful trees and plants grow there,
the stalks and leaves of which are so pliable that the least movement of the
water sets them in motion, just as if they were alive. All the fishes, big
and small, glide in and out among the branches, just as the birds do up
above in the air. In the deepest place of all lies the palace of the Sea
King, the walls of which are of corals and the long, pointed windows of
clearest amber, but the roof is made of mussel shells, which open and shut
with the motion of the water. It is a lovely sight, for in each shell lie
pearls, a single one of which would be a great gem in a queen's crown.

The Sea King had been a widower for many years, but his old mother
kept house for him. She was a wise woman, but very proud of her noble
rank, and therefore she used to wear twelve oysters on her tail, while
other grand folks were allowed to wear only six.

In other respects she deserved great praise, especiallv because she was
so very fond of the sea princesses, her granddaughters. They were six
beautiful children, but the youngest was the most beautiful of them all.
Her skin was as clear and as delicate as a rose-petal, and her eyes as blue
as the deepest sea, but, like all the others, she had no feet. Her body
ended in a fish's tail.

All day long they played in the large halls of the palace, where living
flowers grew out of the walls. The large amber windows were opened.

376 THE LITTLE MERMAID

and the fishes then swam into them, just as the swallows fly in to us when we
open the windows; but the fishes swam right up to the little princesses,
ate from their hands, and let themselves be stroked.

Outside the palace was a large garden with fiery-red and dark-blue
trees; the fruits beamed like gold and the flowers like burning flames,
because they continually moved their stalks and leaves to and fro. The
ground itself was of the finest sand, but as blue as sulphur flames. A
strange blue light shone upon everything down there. It was easier to
believe that one was high up in the air, with only the blue sky above and
beneath one, than that one was at the bottom of the sea.

In calm weather one could see the sun, which looked like a purple
flower from the cup of which all the light streamed forth.

Each of the young princesses had her own little plot in the garden,
where she might dig and plant as she pleased. One gave her flower-bed
the shape of a whale, another preferred hers to resemble a little mermaid ;
but the youngest made hers quite round like the sun, and grew onlv
flowers that gleamed red like the sun itself She was a strange child,
quiet and thoughtful; and when her other sisters decked themselves out
with the most wonderful things which thev obtained from wrecked ships,
she cared only for her flowers, which were like the sun up vonder, and for
a beautiful marble statue, a beautiful bov hewed out of pure white stone,
which had sunk to the bottom of the sea from a wreck. She planted close
by the statue a rose-colored weeping willow, which grew lu.xuriantly, and
hung its fresh branches right over it down to the blue, sandy ground. Its
shadow was violet and moved to and fro like its branches. It looked as if
the top and the roots played at kissing one another.

Nothing gave her greater joy than to hear about the world above and
its people. Her old grandmother had to tell her all she knew about ships
and towns, about human beings and animals. What seemed to her partic-
ularly strange and beautiful was that up on the earth the flowers gave out
a fragrance which they did not do at the bottom of the sea, and that the
woods were green, and the fish, which were to be seen there among the
branches, could sing so loudly and beautifullv that it did one's heart good
to hear them. It was the little birds that her grandmother used to call
fishes, for otherwise the mermaids would not have understood her, as thev
had never seen a bird.

"When you are fifteen years old," said her grandmother, "you will
be allowed to rise to the surface of the sea and sit on the rocks in the
moonlight and look at the big ships which sail past; and forests and towns
you shall also see."

The following year one of the sisters would be fifteen, but the others
— well, each of them was a year younger than the other, so the youngest
would have to wait five long years before she could venture up from the
bottom of the sea and have a look at the world above. But they prom-

THE LITTLE MERMAID 377

ised to tell one another what they had seen on the first day and found to
be most beautiful ; for their grandmother had not told them enough, there
was so much they wanted to know more about.

No one longed more that her time should come than the youngest,
who had the longest time to wait, and who was so quiet and thoughtful.

Many a night did she stand at the open window, looking up through
the dark-blue water, where the fishes were beating about with their tails
and fins. She could see the moon and the stars shining, although some-
what indistinctly, but through the water they appeared much larger than
to our eves. If something like a black cloud passed between her and
the moon, she knew it was either a whale swimming above her, or a ship
sailing past with many people on board ; they could have no idea that a
lovely little mermaid was standing below them, stretching her white hands
up toward the keel of their ship.

The eldest princess was now fifteen years oi' age, and might venture up
to the surface of the water. When she came back, she had hundreds of
things to tell ; but the loveliest of all, she said, was to lie in the moonlight
on a sand-bank when the sea was calm, and see the big city close to the
coast, where the lights were twinkling like hundreds of stars, to hear
the music and the noise and rattle of the carriages and people, to see the
many church towers and steeples, and hear the bells ringing. Just because
she could not get there, she longed most of all for this.

Oh, how the youngest sister listened to every word ! And when, later
on in the evening, she stood by the open window and looked up through
the dark-blue water, she thought of the large city with all its noise and
bustle, and then she thought she could hear the church bells ringing down
where she was.

The year after the second sister was allowed to go to the surface
and to swim about where she pleased. She emerged above the water
just as the sun was setting, and this sight she found to be the loveliest
of all. The whole of the heavens looked like gold, she said; and the
clouds — well — she could not sufficiently describe their glory ! Red and
purple, thev had sailed past above her head, but much more rapidly than
the clouds flew a flock of wild swans, like a long white veil, over the water
toward where the sun stood ; she swam toward it, but it sank below the
horizon, and the rosy hue on the water and the clouds vanished.

The year after the third sister came up to the surface; she was the
boldest of them all, and swam up a broad river which ran into the sea.
She saw beautiful green hills, covered with vines ; palaces and houses
peeped out between the mighty trees of the forests, and she heard how all
the birds were singing. The sun shone so warm that she often had to dive
under the water to cool her burning face. In a little bay she came across
a whole flock of children, who ran and splashed about, quite naked, in
the water ; she wanted to plav with them, but they ran away in great

378 THE LITTLE MERMAID

fright, when a Uttle black animal — it was a dog, but she had never seen
one before — began barking so terribly at her that she became frightened
and made her way back to the open seas. But she could never forget the
mighty forests, the green hills, and the beautiful children who could swim
about in the water, although they had no fish's tail.

The fourth sister was not so daring ; she remained far out at sea among
the wild waves; and there, she said, was certainly the loveliest place one
could see for many miles around, and above rose the heavens liks a big
glass bell. She had seen ships, but they were far away and looked like
sea-gulls ; the lively dolphins had made somersaults, and the great whales
had spouted water from their nostrils till it seemed as if there were a hun-
dred fountains all around.

Now came the fifth sister's turn ; her birthday was in the winter,
and therefore she saw what the others had not seen the first time. The
sea looked quite green, and great icebergs were floating about, each looking
like a pearl, she said, and yet they were much larger than the church
towers built by men. They were of the most wonderful shapes, and
glittered like diamonds. She had settled herself on one of the largest of
them, and all the ships with their terror-stricken crews eluded the place
where she sat, and let the wind play with her long hair. But toward
evening the sky became overcast with clouds ; it thundered and lightened,
and the dark waves lifted the big ice blocks high up, while they shone
brightly at every flash of lightning. All the ships' sails were reefed, the
minds of those on board were filled with fear and anxiety; but she -sat
quietly on her floating iceberg, and saw the blue flashes of forked lightning
strike down into the glittering sea.

When the sisters came to the surface of the water the first time, they
were always delighted with all the new and beautiful sights they saw ; but
now, when they, as grown-up girls, were allowed to go up when they liked,
they became indifferent and longed to be home again, and after a month
had passed they said it was best, after all, down at their place, and, besides,
it was much more pleasant at home.

Many an evening the five sisters would take one another by the arm
and ascend together to the surface. They had beautiful voices — more
beautiful than any human being; and when a storm was gathering, and
they expected ships would be wrecked, they swam in front of the ships,
and sang so sweetly of the delights to be found at the bottom of the sea,
and told the sailors not to be afraid of coming down there. But the sailors
could not understand their language: they believed it was the storm. Nor
did they ever see the splendors down there; for when the ships went
down the men were drowned, and reached the palace of the Sea King only
as corpses.

When, in the evenings, the sisters thus rose, arm in arm, high up
through the water, the little sister would stand all alone lot)king after

THE LITTLE MERMAID 379

them, feeling as if she could cry ; but a mermaid has no tears, and there-
fore she suffered all the more.

"Oh, if I were only fifteen! she said. "I know I shall love the
world up above, and all the people who live and dwell there."

At last she was fifteen years old.

" Well, now you are off our hands," said her grandmother, the old
queen-dowager. " Come here, let me deck you like your other sisters."
And she put a wreath of white lilies in her hair; every leaf in the flowers
was half a pearl. The old lady ordered eight large oysters to hang on to
the princess's tail, to show her high rank.

" But it hurts so ! " said the little mermaid.

"Well, one has to suffer for appearances," said the old lady.

Oh, how gladly would she not have shaken off all this finery and put
aside the heavy wreath ! The red flowers in her garden would have
suited her much better, but she dared not make any change now. "Fare-
well!" she said, and rose through the water as light and bright as a
bubble.

The sun had just set as she lifted her head above the sea, but all the
clouds still gleamed like roses and gold, and in the middle of the pale-red
sky the evening star shone bright and beautiful. The air was mild and
fresh, and the sea calm.

A large ship with three masts was lying close to her, with only one
sail set. Not a breath of wind stirred, and the sailors were lying idly
about among the rigging and across the yards. There was music and
song aboard, and as the evening became darker hundreds of gaily colored
lanterns were lighted. It looked as if the flags of all nations were waving
in the air. The little mermaid swam right up to the cabin window, and
every time the waves lifted her up she could look in through the polished
panes and see many finely dressed people standing in the cabin. But
the handsomest of all was the young prince with the large black eyes.
He could not be more than sixteen years old. It was his birthday which
was being celebrated with all these festivities. The sailors were dancing
on deck, and when the young prince stepped out a hundred rockets shot
up into the air, making everything look as bright as by daylight, so that
the little mermaid became quite frightened and dived under the water.
But she soon put her head above the water again, and it then seemed to
her as if all the stars of heaven were falling down upon her. Such showers
of fire she had never seen before.

Large suns whizzed round and round, and gorgeous fiery fishes flew
about in the blue air, while everything was reflected in the calm, smooth
sea. The ship was so brilliantly lighted up that even the smallest ropes could
be seen distinctly, and the people on board still more so. How handsome
the young prince was! He pressed the hands of the men and laughed and
smiled, while the music rang out in the beautiful night.

380 THE LITTLE MERMAID

It was late, but the little mermaid could not turn her eyes away from
the ship and the handsome prince. The brightly colored lanterns were
being extinguished, the rockets did not rise any more into the air, nor were
any more cannons fired ; but below in the sea a rumbling and buzzing
sound was heard. The little mermaid sat rocking up and down on the
waves so that she could look into the cabin. But the ship was beginning
to make greater headway ; one sail after another was unfurled, and the
billows now rose higher and higher ; large clouds were gathering, and far
away flashes of lightning were seen. Oh, what terrible weather was
coming on ! The sailors had now to take in the sails ; the big ship rushed
at full speed through the wild seas ; the waves rose like big black rocks,
as if they would throw over the masts ; but the ship dived just like a
swan between them, onlv to be lifted up again on the top of the
towering billows.

The little mermaid thought this was tine sport, but the sailors were of
a different opinion. The ship creaked and groaned, the massive planks
gave way to the violent shocks of the seas against the ship, the masts
snapped in two just like reeds, and the ship rolled to and fro, while the
seas penetrated into the hold. The little mermaid now understood that
the ship was in danger, and she herself had to beware of the beams and
fragments of the ship that were drifting about in the water. At one
moment it was so pitch-dark that she could not see a single object; but
the next, when it lightened, she could see so clearly again that she recog-
nized all the people on the ship. All were looking out for themselves as
best they could. She looked anxiously for the young prince, and she saw
him just as the ship was going down, sinking into the deep sea. She was
at first greatly pleased, for now he would come down to her; but then she
remembered that human beings cannot live in the water, and that it would
onlv be his dead body that could come down to her father's palace. No,
he must not die ; and she therefore swam about among the beams and
planks that were drifting about in the water, quite forgetting that they
might have crushed her to death. She dived down deep under the water,
and rose again high up among the waves. She came at last to the young
prince, who could hardly swim any longer in the stormy sea. His arms
and legs began to fail him, his beautiful eyes closed, and he would have
met his death had not the little mermaid come to his assistance. She kept
his head above water, and let the waves drift with her and the prince
whither they liked.

In the early morning the bad weather was over, and not a splinter was
to be seen of the ship. The sun rose red and shining out of the water,
and it seemed to bring back life to the prince's cheeks ; but his eyes
remained closed. The mermaid kissed his high, fair forehead, and stroked
back his wet hair. She thought he was like the marble statue down in
her garden. She kissed him and wished that he might live.

SHIP WAS BEGINNING TO MAKE GREATER HEADWAY; LARGE CLOUDS WERE GATHERING

AND FLASHES OF LIGHTNING WERE SEEN. THE LITTLE MERMAID NOW

UNDERSTOOD THAT THE SHIP WAS IN DANGER.

THE LITTLE MERMAID 383

She now saw in front of her the mainland, with lofty blue mountains,,
on the top of which the white snow looked as bright as if large flocks of
swans had settled there. Down by the shore were beautiful green forests,
in front of which lay a church or a convent, she did not know which, only
that it was a building. Lemon- and orange-trees grew in the garden, and
before the gate stood lofty palm-trees. The sea formed here a little bay,
where the water was quite smooth and calm, but of great depth right up
to the rocky shore where the fine white sand had been washed up. Thither
the little mermaid swam with the handsome prince, and placed him on
the sand, taking great care that his head should lie raised in the sunshine.

The bells in the large white building now began ringing, and a number
of young girls came out into the garden. The little mermaid then swam
some distance farther out to a place behind some high rocks which rose
out ot the water, and covered her head and her shoulders with sea foam, so
that no one could see her little face ; and from here she watched to see
who would discover the poor prince.

She had not long to wait before a voung girl came to the place. She
seemed quite frightened, but only for a moment ; then she fetched some
people, and the mermaid saw how the prince came back to life, and that
he smiled to all around him; but he did not send a smile in her direction,
for how could he know that she had saved him r She became very sad,
and when he was brought into the great building she dived under the
water and returned to her father's palace, greatly distressed in mind.

She had always been quiet and thoughtful, but now she became more
so than ever. Her sisters asked her what she had seen on her first visit up
above, but she would not tell them anything.

Many an evening and morning she visited the place where she had left
the prince. She saw how the fruits in the garden ripened and were
plucked, she saw how the snow melted on the lofty mountains ; but the
prince she did not see, and therefore she always returned home still more
sorrowful than before. Her only comfort was to sit in her little garden
and throw her arms round the beautiful marble statue which resembled
the prince. She neglected her flowers, which soon grew, as if in a
wilderness, over the paths, and twined their long stalks and leaves around
the branches of the trees till the place became quite dark.

At last she could endure it no longer, and told her story to one of her
sisters, and then all the other sisters got to know it; but no one else knew
anything except themselves and a couple of other mermaids, who did not
speak about it to any one except to their nearest and dearest friends. One
ot these knew who the prince was. She had also seen the festivities on board
the ship, and knew where he came from, and where his kingdom lay.

"Come along with us, little sister," said the other princesses, and with
their arms around each other's shoulders they ascended to the surface in
front of the place where the prince's palace lay.

384 THE LITTLE MERMAID

It was built of a kind of light-yellow shining stone, with large flights
of marble stairs, one of which went right down to the sea.

Magnificent gilt cupolas rose above the roof, and between the columns
which surrounded the whole building stood marble statues which looked
as if they were alive. Through the clear glass in the lofty windows one
could see into the most magnificent halls, with costly silk curtains and
tapestries. On the walls hung large paintings, which it was a pleasure to
look at. In the middle of the largest hall a big fountain was playing, its
jets reaching right up into the glass cupola of the ceiling, through which
the sun shone on the water, and on the beautiful plants which grew in the
large basin.

Now she knew where he lived, and many an evening and night did
she come there. She swam much nearer the shore than any of the others
had dared to do ; she even went right up the narrow canal under the
splendid marble balcony which threw a long shadow out over the water.
Here she would sit and look at the young prince, who believed he was all
alone in the bright moonlight.

Many an evening she saw him sailing in his magnificent boat, with
music and waving flags on board, while she peeped out from among the
green rushes; and if the wind caught hold of her long silver-white veil,
any one who saw it thought it was a swan which was spreading out its
wings.

Many a night when the fishermen were out at sea fishing by torch-
light, she heard the many good things they said about the young prince,
and she rejoiced to think she had saved his life when he was floating half
dead on the billows, and she called to mind how heavily his head had
rested on her bosom, and how passionately she had kissed him ; but he knew
nothing at all about this, and could not even dream of her.

More and more she came to love human beings; more and more she
wished to be able to be among them. Their world, she thought, was
far larger than hers. They could fly across the seas in their ships, and
they could climb the lofty mountains, high above the clouds; and the
countries they possessed, with forests and fields, stretched farther than her
eyes could reach. There was so much she wanted to know, but her sisters
could not answer everything ; so she asked the old grandmother, who knew
the upper world well, as she rightly called the countries above the sea.

"If human beings are not drowned," asked the little mermaid, "can
they go on living forever? Do they not die as we die down here in
the sea ?"

"Yes," said the old lady, "they must also die, and their term of life is
even shorter than ours. We can live to be three hundred years old ; but
when we then cease to exist we only become foam on the water, and have
not even a grave down here among our dear ones. We have not an
immortal soul; we shall never live again. We are like the green rushes:

THE LITTLE MERMAID 385

when once cut down we can never live again. Human beings, however,
have a soul which lives forever — which lives after the body has become
dust : it rises up through the clear air, up to all the shining stars. Just as
we rise up out of the sea and see the countries of the world, so do they
ascend to unknown beautiful places which we shall never see."

"Why did we not receive an immortal soul?" asked the little mermaid
in a sad tone. " I would give all the hundreds ot years I have to live to
be a human being only for a day, and afterward share the joys of the
upper world! "

"You must not go on thinking of that," said the old lady; "we are
much happier and better off than the human beings up there."

" So I must die and float as foam upon the sea ! I shall not hear the
music of the billows, or see the beautiful flowers and the red sun ! Can I,
then, do nothing at all to win an immortal soul ?"

"No," said the old queen-dowager. "Only if a man came to love you
so much that you were more to him than his father or mother, if he
clung to you with all his heart and all his love, and let the parson put his
right hand into yours with a promise to be faithful to you here and for all
eternity, then his soul would flow into your body, and you would also
partake of the happiness of mankind. He would give you his soul and still
retain his own. But that can never happen. What we here in the sea
consider most beautiful, our fish's tail, they would consider ugly upon
earth. They do not understand any better. Up there you must have
two clumsy supports which they call legs to be considered beautiful."

Then the little mermaid sighed, and looked sadly at her fish's tail.

"Let us be satisfied with our lot," said the old lady; "we will frisk
and leap about during the three hundred years we have to live in. That
is surely long enough. After that one can rest all the more contentedly in
one's grave. This evening we are going to have a court ball."

No such display of splendor has ever been witnessed on earth. The
walls and ceiling in the large ball-room were of thick but transparent
glass. Several hundreds of colossal mussel-shells, pink and grass-green,
were placed in rows on each side, with blue fires, which lighted up the
whole hall and shone through the walls, so that the sea outside was quite
lit up. One could see all the innumerable fishes, great and small, swim-
ming up to the glass walls. On some the scales shone in purple, and on
others they appeared to be silver and gold.

Through the middle of the hall flowed a broad stream, in which the
mermen and mermaids danced to their own song. Such beautiful voices
the inhabitants of the earth never possessed. The little mermaid sang the
most beautifully of all, and they clapped their hands to her, and for a
moment she felt joyful at heart, for she knew that she had the loveliest
voice of any to be found on earth or in the sea. But soon she began
again to think of the world above. She could not forget the handsome

386 THE LITTLE MERMAID

prince, and her sorrow at not possessing an immortal soul like his. She
therefore stole out of her father's palace, and while everybody was merry
and singing she sat sad at heart in her little garden. Suddenly she heard
the sound of a bugle through the water, and she thought to herself, "Now
he is out sailing — he whom I love more than father and mother, he to whom
my thoughts cling, and in whose hands I would place the happiness of my
life. I will risk everything to win him and an immortal soul. While my
sisters are dancing in my father's palace I will go to the sea witch, of
whom I have always been so frightened. She may advise and help me."

The little mermaid then went out of her garden toward the roaring
whirlpools behind which the witch lived. She had never been that way
before. Neither flowers nor seaweed grew there. Only the bare, gray
sandy bottom could be seen stretching away to the whirlpools where the
water whirled round like roaring mill-wheels, tearing everything they got
hold of down with them into the abyss below. She had to make her way
through these roaring whirlpools to get into the sea witch's district, and
for a long distance there was no other way than over hot, bubbling mud,
which the witch called her turf-moor. Behind it lay her house, in the
middle of a weird forest. All trees and bushes were polyps, half animal,
half plant. They looked like hundred-headed snakes growing out of the
ground. All the branches were long slimy arms with fingers like wiry
worms, and they moved, joint by joint, from the root to the outermost
point. They twisted themselves firmly around everything they could seize
hold of in the sea, and never released their grip. The little mermaid
stood quite frightened before all this, her heart beat with fear, and she was
nearly turning back, but then she thought of the prince and man's im-
mortal soul, and this gave her courage. She twisted her long, fiowing hair
tightly round her head, so that the polyps should not seize her by it,
crossed both her hands on her breast, and then darted forward as rapidly
as fish can shoot through the water, in between the polyps, which
stretched out their wiry arms and fingers after her. She noticed how
they all held something which they had seized — held with a hundred little
arms as if with iron bands. The white skeletons of people who had per-
ished at sea and sunk to the bottom could be seen firmly fixed in the arms
of the polyps, together with ships' rudders and sea chests, skeletons of land
animals, and a little mermaid whom they had caught and strangled.- This
was the most terrible sight of all to her.

She now came to a large slimy place in the forest, where great fat
water snakes were rolling about, showing their ugly whitish-yellow bellies.
In the middle of the open space stood a house built of the white bones of
the people who had been wrecked. There the sea witch was sitting, while
a toad was eating out of her mouth, just as a human being lets a little
canary bird eat sugar from his mouth. The ugly, fat water snakes she
called ht-r little chickens, and allowed them to crawl all over her bosom.

< Hh,K I'.OSIlM.

THE LITTLE MERMAID 389

"I know what you want," said the witch; "it is very stupid of you.
But you shall have your way, for it is sure to bring you unhappiness, my
pretty princess. You want to get rid of your tish's tail and to have two
stumps instead to walk upon, like human beings, so that the young prince
may fall in love with you, and that you may get him and an immortal
soul." And then the witch laughed so loudly and horribly that the toad
and the snakes fell down to the ground, where they rolled about.

"You come only just in time," said the witch, "for after sunrise
to-morrow I should not be able to help you till another year had passed.
I will make a drink for you, with which you must proceed to land before
the sun rises, and then sit down on the shore and drink it, when your tail
will be parted in two and shrink to what human beings call pretty legs;
but it will cause you great pain — you will feel as if a sharp sword went
through you. Every one who sees you will say you are the most beautiful
human child they have seen. You will keep your graceful walk, no
dancer will be able to float about like you ; but at every step you take you
will feel as if you stepped on a sharp knife, and as if vour blood must flow.
If you will sufl^er all this, I will help you."

"Yes," said the little mermaid, in a trembling voice, thinking only of
the prince and of winning an immortal soul.

"But remember," said the witch, "when once you have assumed the
human form, you can never become a mermaid again. You will never be
able to descend through the water to your sisters, or to your father's
palace, and if you do not win the prince's love so that he forgets his father
and mother for your sake and clings to vou with all his heart, and lets the
parson join your hands making you man and wife, then vou will not
receive an immortal soul. The hrst morning after he has married
another your heart will break, and vou will become foam on the
water."

" I will do it," said the little mermaid, and turned as pale as death.

"But you will have to pay me as well," said the witch; "and it is
not a trifle I ask. You have the loveliest voice of all down here at the
bottom of the sea, and with that you think of course you will be able to
enchant him, but that voice you must give to me. I will have the best
thing you possess for my precious draught. I shall have to give you my
own blood in it, so that the draught mav become as sharp as a double-
edged sword."

"But it you take away my voice," said the little mermaid, "what have
I then left?"

"Your beautiful form," said the witch, "your graceful walk, and your
expressive eyes. 'With these you can surely infatuate a human heart. Put
out your little tongue and I will cut it off as my payment, and vou shall
then have the powerful draught."

"So be it,' said the little mermaid; and the witch put the caldron on

390 THE LITTLE MERMAID

the fire to boil the magic draught. " CleanUness is a virtue ! " she said,
and took the snakes and tied them in a knot to scour out the caldron
with. She then slashed her chest and let her black blood drop into the
caldron. The steam formed itself into the most fantastic figures, so that
one could not help being frightened and scared. Every moment the witch
threw some new ingredients into the caldron, and when it began to boil
it sounded like the weeping of a crocodile. At last the draught was
ready, and it looked like the purest water.

"There it is," said the witch, and cut off the little mermaid's tongue.
She was now dumb, and could neither sing nor speak.

" If the polyps should get hold of you when you pass through my
forest," said the witch, "then throw just a single drop of this draught over
them, and their arms and fingers will be rent in a thousand pieces." But
there was no need for the little mermaid to do so, for the polyps drew
back from her in fear when they saw the sparkling draught which shone
in her hand as if it were a glittering star. Thus she quickly got through
the forest, the marsh, and the roaring whirlpools.

She could see her father's palace. The lights in the great ball-room
were extinguished. All were now, no doubt, asleep; but she did not
venture to go with them now that she was dumb and was going away from
them forever. It seemed as if her heart would break with sorrow. She
crept into the garden and took a flower from each of her sisters' flower-
beds, threw a thousand kisses with her hand to the palace, and swam up
through the dark blue waters.

The sun had not yet risen when she saw the prince's palace and arrived
at the magnificent marble steps, but the moon was shining bright and clear.
The little mermaid drank the strong and fiery draught ; she felt as if a
two-edged sword went through her delicate frame; she fell down in a
swoon, and lay like one dead. When the sun began to shine across the
waters she came to herself and felt a burning pain. But right in front of
her stood the handsome young prince. He looked at her so fixedly with
his coal-black eyes that she cast down her own, and then discovered that
her fish's tail had vanished, and that she had the prettiest little white feet
that any young girl could possess. But she was quite unclothed, and she
therefore wrapped herself in her long, luxuriant hair. The prince asked
her who she was, and how she got there ; and she looked at him so mildly
and yet so sadly with her dark blue eyes, for speak she could not. He
then took her by the hand and led her into the palace. As the witch had
told her, each step she made was as if she was treading on the points of
awls and sharp knives ; but she bore it gladly. Holding the prince's hand,
she walked as lightly as a soap-bubble, and he and all the people at court
were surprised at her graceful walk.

Costly clothes of silk and muslin were now brought to her, in which
she arrayed herself She was the most beautiful of all in the palace, but

THE LITTLE MERMAID 391

she was dumb, and could neither sing nor speak. Lovely female slaves,
dressed in silk and gold, appeared and sang before the prince and his royal
parents. One of them sang more beautifully than all the others, and the
prince clapped his hands and smiled at her. This made the little mermaid
sad, for she knew that she had been able to sing far more beautifully, and
thought to herself: "Oh, if he could onlv know that I have given away
my voice forever to be near him ! "

The slaves now began dancing graceful aerial dances to the most lovely
music. Then the little mermaid lifted up her lovely white arms, raised
herself on the tips of her toes, and glided over the door, dancing as no one
yet had danced, x^t each movement her beauty became more apparent,
and her eyes spoke more deeply to the heart than the song of the
slave girls.

All were delighted with her, especially the prince, who called her his
little foundling ; and she went on dancing more and more, although each
time her feet touched the ground she felt as if she were treading on sharp
knives. The prince said she should always remain with him, and she was
allowed to sleep on a velvet cushion outside his door. He had a male
costume made for her, so that she could accompany him on horseback.
They rode through the fragrant forests, where the green branches brushed
against her shoulders and the little birds sang behind the fresh leaves. She
climbed the lofty mountains with the prince; and although her tender feet
bled so that the others could see it, she only laughed and followed him
until they could see the clouds floating below them as if they were a flock
of birds flying away to foreign lands.

At night, when all the others at the prince's palace slept, she went
down to the broad marble steps, where it cooled her burning feet to stand
in the cold sea-water, while she thought of all dear tt) her far down in
the deep.

One night her sisters came arm in arm, singing most mournfully .as
they glided over the water. She beckoned to them, and they recognized
her, and told her how sad she had made them all. After that they visited
her every night ; and one night she saw far away her old grandmother,
who had not been to the surface for many years, and the sea king with his
crown on his head. They stretched out their hands toward her, but did
not venture so near land as her sisters.

Day by day the prince became more fond of her. He loved her as
one loves a good, dear child, but he never thought of making her his
queen. She would have to become his wife, otherwise she would not re-
ceive an immortal soul, and would be turned into froth on the sea on the
morning of his wedding-day.

"Do you not love me most of them all?" the eyes of the little mer-
maid seeme-d to say when he took her in his arms and kissed her beautiful
forehead.

392 THE LITTLE MERMAID

"Yes, you are most dear to me," said the prince, "for vou have the
best heart of all of them. You are the most devoted to me, and you are
like a young girl whom I once saw, but whom I fear I shall never find
again. I was on board a ship which was wrecked, and the waves washed
me ashore close to a holy temple, where several young maidens were in
attendance. The youngest of them found me on the shore and saved my
life. I saw her only twice. She was the only one I could love in the
world; but you are like her, and you have almost driven her image out of
my mind. She belongs to the holy temple, and therefore my good fortune
has sent you to me. We shall never part."

"Alas! he does not know that I saved his life," thought the little mer-
maid. " I carried him across the sea to the forest where the temple stands.
I sat behind the foam and watched for some one to come. I saw the beau-
tiful maiden whom he loves more than me." /Vnd the mermaid sighed
deeply, since she could not cry. "The maiden belongs to the holv temple,
he told me. She will never come out into the world. They do not see each
other any more. I am with him, and see him every day. I will cherish
him, love him, and give my life for him."

But then she heard that the prince was to be married to the heautiful
daughter of the neighboring king, and that was the reason he was fitting
out such a splendid ship. The prince was going to visit the countries of the
neighboring- king, it was said; but it was to see the king's daughter, and
he was going to have a great suite with him. But the little mermaid shook
her head and smiled. She knew the prince's thoughts better than all the
others.

"I must go," he had said to her. " I must see the beautiful princess.
My parents demand it; but they will ntit compel me to bring her home as
my bride. I cannot love her. She is not like the beautiful girl in the
temple, whom you are so like. If, some day, I were to choose a bride, I
would rather choose you, my dumb foundling with the eloquent eyes."
And he kissed her rosy lips, played with her long hair, and laid his head
on her heart, while she dreamed of human happiness and an immor-
tal soul.

"You are not afraid of the sea, my dumb child," said he, as thev stood
on board the noble ship which was to carry him to the country of the
neighboring king; and he told her about storms and calms, about strange
fishes in the deep, and what the divers had seen there ; and she smiled at
his stories, for she knew, ot course, more than any one else about the won-
ders of the deep.

In the moonlight night, when all were asleep except the steersman who
stood at the helm, she sat on the gunwale of the ship, looking down into
the clear water. She thought she saw her father's palace, and in the up-
permost part of it her old grandmother, with the silver crown on her head,
gazing up through the turbulent current caused by the keel of the ship.

THE LITTLE MERMAID 393

Just then her sisters came up to the surface, staring sorrowfully at her and
wringing their white hands. She beckoned to them, smiled, and wanted
to tell them that she was well and happy, but the ship's boy came up to
her, and the sisters dived down, so that he remained in the belief that the
white objects he had seen were the foam on the sea.

The following morning the ship sailed into the harbor of the beautiful
city ot the neighboring king. All the church bells were ringing, and from
the lofty towers trumpets were being blown, while the soldiers were stand-
ing with flying colors and glittering bayonets. Every day there was a fes-
tival. Balls and parties followed one another; but the princess had not as
yet appeared. She was being brought up at a holy temple far away, they
said, where she learned every royal virtue. At last she came.

The little mermaid was very anxious to see her beauty, and she had to
acknowledge that a more beautiful being she had never seen. Her skin
was so fine and clear, and from behind her long dark eyelashes shone a
pair of dark blue, faithful eyes.

"It is you," said the prince — "vou who saved my life when I lay like
a corpse on the shore." And he folded his blushing bride in his arms.

"Oh, I am far too happy!" he said to the little mermaid. "My
highest wish, that which I never dared to hope for, has been fulfilled.
You will rejoice at my happiness, for you love me more than all of them."
And the little mermaid kissed his hand, and felt already as if her heart
were breaking. His wedding morning would bring death to her, and
change her into foam on the sea.

All the church bells were ringing, and heralds rode about the streets
proclaiming the betrothal. On all the altars fragrant oil was burning in
costly silver lamps. The priests swung jars with incense, and the bride
and bridegroom joined hands and received the blessing of the bishop. The
little mermaid stood dressed in silk and gold, holding the bride's train,
but her ears did not hear the festive music, and her eyes did not see
the holy ceremony. She was thinking only of the approaching night,
which meant death to her, and of all she had lost in this world.

The very same evening the bride and the bridegroom went on board
the ship, the cannons roared, all the flags were waving, and in the middle
of the deck a royal tent of purple and gold, with the most sumptuous
couches, had been erected. There should the bridal pair rest during the
quiet, cool night.

The sails swelled in the wind, and the ship glided smoothlv and almost
motionless over the bright sea.

When it grew dark gaily colored lanterns were lighted, and the sailors
danced merry dances on the deck. The little mermaid could not help
thinking of the first time she rose out of the sea and saw the same splendor
and merriment, and she joined in the dance, whirling round and round
like the swallows when they are pursued. All applauded her. Never

394 THE LITTLE MERMAID

before had she danced so charmingly. Her tender feet felt as if they were
being pierced by sharp knives, but she did not feel this; her heart suffered
from a far more terrible pain. She knew it was the last evening she should
see him for whom she had left her relations and her home, for whom she
had given up her beautiful voice, and had daily suffered intinite agonies, of
which he had no idea. It was the last night she would breathe the same
air as he, and see the deep sea and the starlit sky. An eternal night
without thoughts and dreams awaited her, who had no soul, who could
never gain one. On board the ship the rejoicings and the merriment
went on until far beyond midnight. She laughed and danced while the
thoughts of death were uppermost in her mind. The prince kissed his
lovely bride, and she played with his black locks, and arm in arm they
went to rest in the magnificent tent.

Everything then became quiet on the ship, only the steersman was
standing at the helm, and the little mermaid laid her white arms on the
gunwale and gazed toward the east for the first blush of the morning. The
first ray of the sun, she knew, would be her death. Then she saw her
sisters rising from the sea. They were as pale as she, and their long, beau-
tiful hair no longer waved in the wind. It had been cut off.

"We have given it to the witch, that she might help you, that you
may not die this night. She has given us a knife; here it is. See how
sharp it is! Before the sun rises you must plunge it into the prince's heart,
and when his warm blood touches your feet they will grow together to a
fish's tail, and you will become a mermaid again, and can go down with us
into the sea and live your three hundred years before you become the dead
salt froth on the sea. Make haste ! He or you must die before the sun
rises. Our old grandmother is mourning so much for you that her white
hair has fallen off, just as ours fell under the scissors of the witch. Kill
the prince and come back with us. Make haste! Do you see the red
streak on the sky? In a few minutes the sun will rise, and then you must
die." And the sisters gave a strange, deep sigh and vanished in the waves.

The little mermaid drew back the purple curtain of the tent, and saw
the beautiful bride asleep with her head resting on the prince's breast. She
bent down, kissed him on his beautiful forehead, and looked at the sky,
where the gleam of the morning was growing brighter and brighter. She
glanced at the sharp knife, and again fixed her eyes on the prince, who
just then whispered the name of his bride in his dreams. He thought only
of her. The knife trembled in the hand of the little mermaid — then she
suddenly flung it far away into the waves, which gleamed red where it fell.
The bubbles that rose to the surface looked like drops of blood. Once
more she looked with dimmed eyes at the prince, and then threw herself
from the ship into the sea. She felt her body dissolving itself into foam.

The sun now rose above the horizon, its rays falling so mild and warm
on the deadly cold sea foam that the little mermaid did not feel the pangs

THE LITTLE MERMAID 395

of death. She saw the bright sun, and above her floated hundreds of beau-
tiful transparent beings, through whom she could see the white sails of the
ships and the red clouds in the sky. Their voice was melodious, but so
spiritual that no human ear could hear it, just as no human eye could see
them. They had no wings, but soared lightly through the air. The little
mermaid now discovered that she had a body like theirs, and that she was
gradually rising out of the foam.

"Where am I going?" she asked. And her voice sounded like that
of the other beings, so spiritual that no earthly music could reproduce it.

" To the daughters of the air," replied the others. "A mermaid has
not an immortal soul, and can never gain one unless she wins the love of
a man. Her eternal existence depends upon the power of another. Neither
have the daughters of the air any immortal soul, but they can win one by
their good deeds. We fly to the warm countries, where the close, pestilent
air kills human beings. There we waft cool breezes to them. We spread
the perfume of the flowers through the air, and distribute health and
healing. When for three hundred years we have striven to do all the good
we can, we receive an immortal soul, and can share in the eternal happi-
ness of mankind. You, poor little mermaid, have with all your heart
striven to reach the same goal as we. You have sufl^ered and endured, and
raised yourself to the world of spirits. Now you can, by good deeds, ob-
tain an immortal soul after three hundred years."

And the little mermaid lifted her transparent arms toward the sun, and
for the first time she felt tears coming into her eyes.

On the ship there was again life and merriment. She saw the prince
with his beautiful bride searching for her. Sorro-wfully they looked at the
bubbling foam, as if they knew that she had thrown herself into the sea.
Invisibly she kissed the bride's forehead. She gave the prince a smile, and
rose with the other children of the air on the rosy cloud which sailed
through space. "After three hundred years we shall thus float into the
kingdom of heaven."

" We may yet get there earlier," whispered one of them. "Invisibly
we float into the houses of mankind, where there are children ; and h)r
every day on which we find a good child who brings joy to his parents and
deserves their love, our time of probation is shortened. The child does
not know when we fly through the room, and when we smile with joy
at such a good child, then a year is taken off the three hundred. But if
we see a bad and wicked child, we must weep tears of sorrow, and for
every tear a day is added to our time of trial."

IT IS QUITE TRUE!

)

f'^-

ZJ>

THERE IS A HEN WHO HAS PLUCKED OUT ALL HEK FEATHERS
FOR THE SAKE OF THE COCK !

IT IS QUITE TRUE!

terrible

itory

lid

hen who belonged to a quarter of the

I town where the affair had not happened. " It is a terrible story

-*■ from a poultry-yard ! I dare not sleep by myself to-night. It is

a good thing there are so many of us together on the perch." And then

she began telling the story, which made the feathers of the hens stand on

end and the cock drop its comb. It is quite true !

369

400

IT IS QUITE TRUE!

But we will begin at the beginning, and
that took place in another part of the town,
in a poultrv-yard. The sun had set, and the
fowls had gone to roost. x\mong them was a
white hen with rather short legs, who laid eggs
regularly, and was, for a hen, most respectable
in every way. As she settled down on her
perch she pecked herself with her beak, and
then a little feather fell from her.

"There it goes!" she said ; "the more I peck
myself the prettier I become." And she only
said this in fun, for

~ she was the merry

one among the hens; but otherwise, as already
said, highly respectable. And then she went
to sleep.

It was quite dark all round them. The
hens sat side by side on the perch ; but the hen
who sat next to the white hen was not asleep.
She could hear, and she could not hear (as one
has to do in this world if one wants to live in
peace) ; but she could not help telling her
neighbor: "Did you hear what was said just
now ? I sha'n't mention names, but there is a
hen here who wants to pluck out all her
feathers in order to look fine. If I were a
cock I should look with contempt upon her."
And just above

the hens sat an owl,
with her husband

and children. They have sharp ears in that
family, and they heard every word which the
hen below them had said. They rolled their
eyes, and Mother Owl fanned herself with her
wings and said: "Don't listen to her; but very
likely you heard what she said. I heard it
with my own ears. One has to hear a great
deal before they fall off. There is one of the
hens who has so far forgotten what is befitting
for a hen that she sits plucking out all her
feathers while the cock sits looking at her."

" Prenez garde aux enfants," said Father
Owl. "That is not a story for children to
hear."

IT IS dUITE TRUE

401

"I must tell it to my neighbor
opposite. She is such a respectable owl
to associate with." And off flew
Mother Owl.

" Hooh ! hooh ! oohooh ! " thev
hooted to each other, so that it could
be heard right down among the pigeons
in the pigeon-house oi' the neighbor
opposite.

" Have you heard the news .? Have
you heard it ? Hooh ! hooh ! There
is a hen who has plucked out all her
feathers for the sake of the cock. She

will freeze t(
dead alreadv.
"Where,

death, if she is not
Hooh ! oohooh ! "
where ? " cooed the
pigeons.

" In the house opposite. I have
as good as seen it myself. It is
almost too improper a story to tell,
but it is quite true."

"We believe it; we believe
every word of it ! " said the pigeons,
and cooed down to the poultry in
the yard: "There is a hen — well,
some say there are two, who have

plucked out all their feathers so as not
to look like the others, and so attract
the attention of the cock. It is a
dangerous thing to do ; one can catch
a cold and die of fever; and they are
both dead ! "

"Wake up! wake up ! " crowed the
cock, and flew up on the paling. His
eyes were still heavy with sleep, but he
went on crowing for all that: "There
are three hens which have died of a
broken heart. They were all in love with
the cock, and had plucked out all their
feathers. It 's a terrible story! I don't
want to keep it to mvself. Pass it on ! "

402

IT IS dUITE TRUE

"Pass it on ! " squeaked the bats; and the hens clucked and the cocks
crowed: "Pass it on! Pass it on!" And thus the story went from
poultry-yard to poultrv-yard, and at last it came back to the place from
which it had started.

"There are five hens," so the story ran, "who have plucked out all
their feathers to show which of them had become thinnest for love of the
cock ; and then they pecked each other till they bled and fell down dead,
to the shame and disgrace of their family and the great loss of their
master."

And the hen who had lost the loose little feather did not, of course,
recognize her own story, and, being a respectable hen, she said : " I have
the greatest contempt for those hens. But there are many more of that
sort. Such things must not be hushed up, and I will do my best to get
the story into the papers, so that it may get known all over the country.
It will serve those hens right, and their family too."

And it got into the newspapers; it was in print, so it must he quite
true ! ^ little feather may easily become Jive hens.

THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL

IHE UOOSE JUMPED FROM THK DISH WITH KNIFE AND FORK IX ITS UAC

n ,

THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL

IT was terribly cold; the snow was falling, and the dark evening was
setting in; it was the last evening of the year — New Year's Eve. In
this cold and uncomfortable darkness a poor little girl, bareheaded
and barefooted, was walking through the streets. She had certainly had
some sort of slippers on when she left her home, but they were not of
much use to her, as thev were very large slippers. Her mother had

■105

406 THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL

used them last, so you can guess they were large ones. As the little girl
ran across the street just as two carriages were passing at a terrible rate,
she lost the slippers. One of the slippers could not be found, and the
other a boy ran away with. He said he would use it for a cradle when
he got children of his own.

There was the little girl walking about on her naked little feet ; they
were red and blue with cold. In an old pinafore she had some bundles
of matches, and in her hand she carried one of them. No one had bought
anything of her the whole day, and no one had given her a penny.
Hungry and shivering, she passed on, poor little girl, looking the very
picture of misery. The snowdakes fell on her long yellow hair, which
curled itself so beautifully about her neck ; but of course she had no
thoughts for such vanities. Lights were shining in all the windows, and
there was such a delicious smell of roast goose in the street. "Ah! it is
New Year's Eve," she thought.

Over in a corner between two houses — the one projected a little
bevond the other — she crouched down, with her little feet drawn up under
her; but she felt colder and colder, and she dared not go home, for she
had not sold any matches or got a single penny; her father would beat
her, and, besides, it was just as cold at home. They certainly had a roof over
their heads, but through this the wind whistled, although they had stopped
the largest cracks with rags and straw. Her little hands were quite
benumbed with cold. Ah ! a match might do some good. If she only
dared to take one out of the bundle and rub it against the wall, and warm
her fingers over the flame! She took one out — ratch ! — how it spurted,
how it burned! It was a warm, clear flame, just like a little candle, when
she held her hand round it. It was a wonderful light ; the little girl
thought she was sitting right before a great iron stove with bright brass
feet and brass mountings. How beautiful the fire burned ! How it warmed
her I But what was that ? The little girl stretched her feet out to warm
them also, and the flame went out — the stove vanished — she had only the
small stump of the burned match in her hand. A new match was rubbed
against the wall ; it burned, it gave a beautiful light, and where the light
fell on the wall it became transparent like a veil. She could see right
into the room, where the table was covered with a bright white cloth,
and on it a fine china dinner service; the roast goose, stufl^ed with prunes
and apples, was steaming beautifully. But, what was still more delightful,
the goose jumped from the dish and waddled along the floor, with knife
and fork in its back, straight toward the poor girl, when the match went
out, and there was only the thick, cold wall to be seen. She lighted a
new match. Then she was sitting under a beautiful Christmas-tree; it was
still larger and more decorated than that she had seen through the glass
door at the rich merchant's last Christmas. Thousands of candles burned
upon the green branches, and colored pictures, like those that you see in

rrnm^

SHE LIGHTED A NEW MATCH. THEN SHE WAS SITTING UNDER A BEAUTIFUL CHRIS
WITH THOUSANDS OF CANDLES BURNING UPON THE GREEN BRANCHES.

IMAS TREE,

THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL

407

the shop windows, were looking down upon her. The Httle girl stretched
both her hands toward them — and the match went out. The light
seemed to go farther and farther away from her. She saw now that they
were the bright stars. One of them fell down, leaving a long train of fire
after it.

"Now some one is dying," said the little one. Her old grandmother,
who was the only one who had been good to her, but was now dead, had
told her when a star falls a soul goes to God.

She rubbed a match again on the wall. It gave such a light, and in
its luster stood the old grandmother — so clear, so bright, so mild, so
blessed !

"Grandmother," cried the little one, "oh, take me with you! I know
you will be gone when the match goes out — gone, just like the warm
stove, the beautiful roast goose, and the great, beautiful Christmas tree."
And she rubbed quickly all the remaining matches in the bundle, — she
would not lose her grandmother, — and the matches burned with such a
splendor that it was brighter than in the middle of the day. Grandmother
had never before been so beautiful, so grand. She took the little girl in
her arms, and they flew away in brightness and joy, so high — high, where
there was no cold, no hunger, no fear — they were with God!

But, next morning, in the corner by the house sat the little girl with
red cheeks and a smile about her mouth, dead — frozen to death on the
last evening of the old year. The sun of New Year's morning rose up on
the little corpse, with the matches in the pinafore, and one bundle nearly
burned. " She wanted to warm herself," said the people. No one knew
what beautiful visions she had had, and in what splendor she had gone
into the New Year's joy and happiness with her old grandmother.

TWELVE BY THE MAIL

THE WEATHER WAS SHARP AND FROSTY, THE SKY
GLITTERED WITH SPARKLING STARS.

TWELVE BY THE MAIL

THE weather was sliarp and frosty, the sky ghttered with sparkling
stars, and not a breath of wind stirred the air. "Bump!" there
went a pot against the door.' " Bang! " went a gun in ht)nor of
the new year. It was New Year's Eve, and the clock was now striking
twelve.

" Taratantarra ! " There comes the mail. The big mail-coach halted
at the town gate. There were in all twelve passengers. The coach could
not hold more. All the places had been taken.

"Hurrah! Hurrah!" they
shouted in all the houses where
the people were keeping New
Year's Eve, and had just stood up
with filled glasses to drink suc-
cess to the new year.

" Health and happiness in

the

year! " they shouted.

"A pretty wife, plenty t)f money,
and no worries! "

And thus they drank success
to one another, and clinked their
glasses, while the mail-coach
stood at the town gate with the
stranger guests, the twelve trav-
elers.

Who were they ? They had
passports and luggage with them,
even presents for you and me
and all the people in the town.
Who were the strangers ? What
did they want, and what did
they bring with them ?

"Good morning," they said
to the sentry at the gate.

"Good morning," said he, for the clock had just struck twelve.

"Your name? Your profession?" the sentry asked the first
stepped out of the coach.

' It is an old Danish custom to bang an earthen pot against the doors on New Year's Eve.
411

^ho

412

TWELVE BY THE MAIL

"Look, at the passport," said the man. "That is I." He was a
great big fellow, dressed in a bearskin coat and fur boots. " I am
the man in whom so many persons place all their hopes. Come to-morrow,
and you shall have a New Year's present. I throw coppers and silver
dollars about, I give presents, and I give balls — altogether thirty-one balls.

THEY WERE KEEPING NEW YEARS EVE, AND WERE DRINKING SUCCESS TO THE NEW YEA

I have no more nights to spare. My ships are frozen fast in the ice, hut
it is nice and warm in my office. I am a merchant, and my name is
January. I have got only bills with me."

Then came the next. He was a merry fellow. He was the manager
of the theaters, of the masquerade balls and all the amusements you can
think of. His luggage was a great barrel.

"We '11 get more fun out of that at Shrovetide than out of the cat,"

TWELVE BY THE MAIL 413

said he. " I want to amuse others as well as myself, for I have the
shortest time to live of the whole tamily. I can become only twenty-
eight. Sometimes thev put on an extra day, but that makes no differ-
ence. Hurrah ! "

"You must n't shout so loud," said the sentry.

" Of course I must," said the man. "I am Prince Carnival, and travel
under the name of February."

Now came the third. He looked the image of Lent, but carried his
head high, for he was related to "the forty knights," and was a weather
prophet; but it is not a very fat living, and that 's why he praised the
lenten time. His decoration was a bunch ot violets in his button-hole, but
the dowers were very small.

" March ! March ! " cried the fourth, and gave the third a push.
" March ! March ! Let "*s go into the guard-room ; there 's punch there ;
I can smell it." But it was n't true; he wanted to make an April fool
of him; that 's how the fourth began. He seemed to be a smart fellow;
he did n't do much work, but kept a lot of holidays. " It makes one's
temper verv changeable," he said. "Rain and sunshine, moving in and
moving out. I am also agent for furniture removals.' I go round and
ask people to funerals ; I can both laugh and cry. I have my summer
clothes in the portmanteau, but it would be foolish to begin to wear them.
Here I am. For show I go out in silk stockings, and carry a muff."

Then a lady stepped out oi' the coach. " Miss May," she said,
announcing herself. She was dressed in summer clothes, and had galoshes
on her feet. She wore a silk dress the color of the green beech leaves,
and anemones in her hair, and she brought such a perfume of sweet
woodruff with her that the sentrv began to sneeze. " God bless you ! "
she said ; that was her greeting. How lovelv she was ! She was a
singer: not at the theaters, but in the woods; not at fairs, but in the fresh
green woods, where she wandered about and sang for her own amusement.
In her work-bag she carried Christian Winter's' "Woodcuts," for they are
just like the beechwood, and Richardt's "Minor Poems," which are like
woodruff.

"Now our young mistress is coming! " they cried in the coach, and
then Mistress June stepped out. She was young and delicate, proud and
charming. One could see at once she was born to keep the feast of the
Seven Holy Sleepers. She gave a party on the longest day of the year, so
that the guests might have time to partake of all the dishes on her table.
She could well afford to drive in her own carriage, but she traveled by
the mail-coach like the rest, for she wanted to show she was not proud.
She did not travel alone, for she was accompanied by her younger
brother, Julv.

1 In Denmark most removals take place in April.
- Winter and Riihardt, now dead, are well-known Danish lyrical poets.

414 TWELVE BY THE MAIL

He was a strong, big fellow, dressed in summer clothes and a Panama
hat. He had very little luggage with him, for it gave one such a lot of
trouble in the hot weather. He had only a bathing cap and drawers with
him, which was not much.

Then came old mother August in a big crinoline. She was a whole-
sale dealer in fruit, the owner of many fish-ponds and a farm. She was
fat, and looked very warm ; she took part in all kinds of work, and went
herself with the beer-keg to the people in the fields. " In the sweat of
your brow you shall eat your bread," she said. " That 's in the Bible.
Afterward we can give a dance in the wood and a harvest festival."

Now a man came out of the coach. He was a painter by profession,
— a master of colors, — which the woods soon got to know. The leaves
soon had to change color, but he could do it so beautifullv when he liked.
The woods would soon begin to glow in red, yellow, and brown. The
master whistled like the black starling, was a diligent worker, and hung
the brownish, greenish hop-vine around his beer-jug; it looked ornamental,
and he had an eye tor the decorative. Here he now stood with his pot ot
colors, which was all the luggage he had.

Now came the squire who was thinking of October, of plowing and
tilling his fields, and also a little of the pleasures of the chase. He had a
dog and a gun with him, and nuts in his bag — crick, crack! He had
an awful lot of luggage, amongst which was an English plow. He
talked about agricultural affairs, but one could not hear very much for
all the coughing and hawking that was going on. It was November that
was coming.

He had a cold in his head, — a terrible cold, — so that he had to use
sheets instead of handkerchiefs ; and yet he had to accompany the servant
girls to their situations, he said. But the cold would soon get better when
he began cutting firewood; and this he was anxious to do, for he was the
master of the guild of sawvers. He spent his evenings in cutting out
skates. He knew that before many weeks were over this pleasure-giving
foot-gear would be in great demand.

Now came the last passenger, good old mother December, with her
warming-pan. She felt very cold, but her eyes beamed like two bright
stars. She carried a flower-pot with a small fir-tree. "I will look
after it and tend it, so that it will be a big tree by Christmas Eve, and reach
right from the floor up to the ceiling. It will be decorated with lighted
candles, gilt apples, and garlands of colored paper. The warming-pan
warmed like a stove. I take the fairy-tale book out of my pocket and read
aloud, so that all the children in the room become quiet ; but the dolls on
the tree become alive, and the little wax angel at the top of the tree shakes
her gold tinsel wings, and flies from the green top to kiss young and old
in the room, even the poor children who are standing outside singing
Christmas carols about the Star ot Bethlehem."

lEN A LA

ANNOUN'CING HERSELF.

TWELVE BY THE MAIL 417

"Now the coach may drive away," said the sentry. "Now we have
all twelve. Let the next coach drive up."

"First let the twelve get in all right," said the captain, who was on
duty. "One at a time! I shall keep the passport; it holds good for a
month for each of you. When the month is over I will write on the back
of it and say how you have behaved yourselves. Mr. January, will you
please step in ? "

And so in he went.

When a year has passed I will tell you what the twelve have brought
to you, to me, and to all of us. I don't know now, nor do they know
themselves, I think — for they are wonderful times we live in.

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

^%I.

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

THERE was once upon a time a king's son. No one had so many
and such pretty books as he. Everything that had happened in this
world he could read about in them and see depicted in splendid
pictures. He could find out everything about all the pictures and coun-
tries in the world. But as to where the Garden of Paradise was to be found
not a word was mentioned, and that was the very thing he was thinking
most about.

His grandmother had told him, when he was quite a little boy and just
beginning to go to school, that every flower in the Garden of Paradise was
a most delicious cake, and that the pistils were filled with the finest wine.
On some of them history was inscribed, on others geography or tables, and
one needed only to eat cakes in order to learn one's lesson. The more
one ate, the more one knew of history, geography, and tables.

421

422 THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

That was what he believed at that time ; but as he grew older and got
to know more, and became wiser, he could understand that the delights in
the Garden of Paradise must be something quite different.

"Oh, why did Eve pick of the Tree of Knowledge? Why did Adam
eat of the forbidden fruit? If it had been I, it would not have happened.
Sin should never have entered the world." That is what he said at that
time; and he said so still when he was seventeen years old. The Gar-
den of Paradise filled all his thoughts.

One day he was reading in the forest. He was alone, for that was his
greatest pleasure.

The evening set in, the clouds gathered, and it began to rain as it the
windows of heaven were opened and were pouring torth their waters. It
was as dark as it is at night at the bottom of the deepest well. At one
moment he slipped on the wet grass, and the next he stumbled over the
bare stones which stuck out of the rocky ground. All his clothes were
dripping wet. There was not a drv thread on the poor prince. He had
to crawl ever large boulders, where the water oozed out of the thick moss.
He was on the point of fainting when he heard a strange hissing sound,
and in front of him he saw a cavern all alight. In the middle of it was
burning a fire big enough to roast a whole stag, which was actually being
done — the finest stag imaginable, with its long horns, was stuck upon the
spit, and was being turned slowly round between the trunks of two pine-
trees that had been felled.

An elderly woman, as tall and strong as if she were a man in disguise,
sat by the fire, busy throwing one log after another upon it.

"Just come nearer," she said; "sit down by the fire, and get your
clothes dried."

"There is a great draught here," said the prince, as he sat down on
the ground.

" It '11 be worse than it is when my sons come home," answered the
woman. " You are in the cavern of the winds. My sons are the four
winds of the world. Do you understand that ? "

"Where are your sons?" asked the prince.

" It is not easy to answer a stupid question," said the woman. " My
sons are their own masters. They are playing at rounders with the
clouds up yonder in the grand parlor." And then she pointed up in
the air.

" Oh, indeed ! " said the prince. " But you talk rather harshly, and
you are not quite as gentle as the women I generally see about me."

" I suppose they have nothing else to do. I am obliged to be harsh
to keep my boys in order. But I do it, although they are pretty
headstrong. Do you see the four sacks which are hanging on the wall ?
They are just as afraid of them as you have been ot the rod behind
the looking-glass. I can double up the boys, I can tell you, and then I

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 423

put them in the hag. We make no ceremony about it. There they
stop, and cannot get out to gad about till it suits me. But here comes one
ot them."

It was the North Wind who came in and brought an icy chill with
him. Big hailstones bounded along the ground, and the snowflakes flew
all round the room. He was dressed in bearskin trousers and jacket. A hood
of sealskin came down over his ears, while long icicles hung from his
beard, and hailstones were rolling down from the collar of his jacket, one
after the other.

"Don't go near the Are so soon," said the prince. "You can easily
get your face and hands frost-bitten."

" Frost-bitten !" said the North Wind, with a loud laugh. "Frost-
bitten ! Why, frost is just my greatest delight. But what sort of a
stripling are you.? How did you get into the cavern of the winds?"

"He is my guest," said the old woman, "and if you are not satisfied
with that explanation you '11 soon find yourself in the bag. Now you know
my opinion."

Well, that settled matters, and the North Wind told them where he
had come from, and where he had now been for nearly a whole month.

"I come from the Polar Sea," said he. "I have been on Beeren
Island with the Russian walrus-hunters. I sat asleep at the helm as they
sailed away from the North Cape. When I happened from time to time
to awake, the fulmars would be flying about my legs. They are very
funny birds ; they give a sudden flap with their wings, and then they keep
them stretched out and quite motionless, and sail through the air at
full speed."

"Don't spin it out too long," said the mother of the winds. "And so
you got to Beeren Island?"

" Ah, that 's a fine place. There 's a floor for you to dance upon as
flat as a pancake. Half-thawed snow, moss, sharp stones, and skele-
tons of walruses and ice-bears were lying all about, looking like giants'
arms and legs covered with greenish mold. You would think the sun
had never shone upon them. I puff^ed away some of the mist in order to
see the shed. There was a house built of wreck-wood and covered with
walrus hides, the fleshy side of which was turned outward and looked both
red and green.

"On the roof a live ice-bear sat growling. I went along the shore,
looked at the birds' nests, and saw the unfledged youngsters, which were
screeching and gaping with their beaks open. I blew down in the
thousand throats and taught them to close their mouths. Farthest away
the walruses were rolling about like live intestines or giant maggots with
pigs' heads and teeth an ell long.'

"You are a good story-teller, my boy," said the mother. " It makes
my mouth water to listen to you."

424 THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

"Then the hunting began. The harpoon was thrown right into the
walrus's breast, and the reeking jets of blood rose like a fountain above the
ice. Just then I thought of my own sport. I began to blow hard. I let
the mountain-high icebergs hem in the boats. Ho ! how they howled
and how they screamed ! But I howled louder than them all. The carcasses
of the dead walruses, the sailors' chests, and the tackle were thrown out
upon the ice. I blew the snowflakes about their ears, and let those on
board the ice-bound vessels drift with their catch to the south to taste salt
water. They will never come back to Beeren Island."

"Then you have done something wicked," said the mother of the
winds.

"What good I have done the others can tell," he said; "but here
comes my brother from the West. I like him best of all, for there is a
smell of the seas and a bracing freshness about him."

"Is it little Zephyr.?" asked the prince.

"Yes, of course it is Zephyr," said the old woman ; "but he is not so
little as you imagine. In the days of old he was a handsome bov, but
now that is all over."

He looked like a wild man, and he wore a padded hat, so that he
should not hurt his head. In his hand he held a mahogany club, hewn
in the American mahogany forests. Nothing less would do.

"Where do you come from?" asked his mother.

"From the wild forests," he said, "where the prickly lianas make
hedges between trees, where the water snakes lie in the wet grass, and
where human beings seem out of place."

"What did you do there?"

" I looked at the deep river. I saw how it rushed over the cliff, how
it became spray and flew toward the clouds to support the rainbow. I saw
the wild buffalo swimming in the river; but the current carried him away.
He drifted with a tlock of wild ducks, which flew up into the air where
the water rushed over the precipice. The buffalo was carried along with
it. That pleased me, and I raised such a storm that it tore up ancient
trees, which sailed down the river and were smashed into bits."

"And have you done nothing else?" asked the old woman.

" I have turned somersaults in the Savannahs, I have stroked the wild
horses and shaken down cocoanuts. Yes, yes; I have lots ot stories to
tell. But one must not tell everything one knows. You know "that,
mother."

And then he kissed his mother so violently that she nearly fell on her
back. He was really a wild young fellow.

Just then came the South Wind in a turban and a flowing Bedouin
cloak.

"It 's very cold in here," said he, and threw some fuel on the tire.
" One can feel that the North Wind came back first."

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 425

"It is hot enough here to roast an ice-bear," said the North Wind.

"You are an ice-bear yourself," said the South Wind.

"Do vt)u want to he put into the bags?" asked the old woman. "Sit
down on the stone there and tell us where you have been."

"In Africa, mother," he answered. "I went lion-hunting with the
Hottentots in the land of the Kafirs. Oh, what grass grows on the
plains there — as green as olives ! There the gnus danced about, and
there the ostrich ran a race with me ; but I was the fastest, after all. I
came to the desert — to the yellow sand which looks like the bottom of the
sea. I met a caravan. They killed their last camel to get water to drink
but it was only a little they got. Above the sun was scorching, and below
the sand was roasting. There were no bounds to that vast desert. I gam-
boled about in the fine loose sand, and sent it whirling up into great
pillars. What a dance! You should have seen how cowed the drome-
dary stood, and how the merchant pulled his caftan over his head. He
threw himself down before me as before Allah, his god. Now they are
buried. A pyramid of sand covers them all. One day, when I blow it
away, the sun shall bleach their white bones. Then travelers will see
there have been people there before, otherwise they would not have
believed it."

"So you have done nothing but wicked deeds," said the mother.
"Just march into the bag." And before he knew of it, she had seized
the South Wind by the waist and put him in the bag. He rolled about
on the floor, but she sat down upon him, and then he had to lie quiet.

"You have some lively boys," said the prince.

"Yes, indeed," she answered ; "and I know how to manage them.
Here comes the fourth."

It was the East Wind, and he was dressed like a Chinaman.

"So you come from that quarter," said the mother. "I thought you
had been to the Garden of Paradise."

"I am going there to-morrow," said the East Wind; "to-morrow it
will be a hundred years since I was there. I come from China now,
where I have danced round about the porcelain tower till all the bells
began to tinkle. Down in the streets the officials were being punished.
Bamboo canes were thrashed to pieces across their shoulders, and they were
people of the first to the ninth degree. They cried, * Many thanks, my
fatherly benefactor,' but they did not mean anything by it, and I rang the
bells and sang, 'Tsing, tsang, tsu.' "

" You are in a gay mood," said the old woman. " It is a good thing
you are going to the Garden of Paradise to-morrow ; it always improves
your manners. Drink plentifully from the fountain oi' wisdom, and bring
a small bottle with you tor me."

"That I will," said the East Wind. "But why have you put my
brother from the south into the bag? Let him out. He must tell me

426 THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

about bird Phoenix. The princess in the Garden of Paradise always wants
to hear about that bird when I pay her a visit every hundredth year. Open
the bag. There 's a good mother, and I will make you a present of
two pocketfuls ot tea, just as green and tresh as when it was picked on
the spot."

"Well, for the sake of the tea, and because you are my pet boy, I will
open the bag." This she did, and the South Wind crept out; but he
looked rather abashed, because the strange prince had seen everything that
had happened.

"Here is a palm-leaf for the princess," said the South Wind. "This
leaf the old bird Pha^nix — the only one there was in the world — has
given me. With his beak he has inscribed on it the whole history of his
life during the hundred years he lived, and now she can read it herself. I
saw how bird Phcenix set fire to his nest himself, and sat there while he
was burned, just like a Hindu's widow. How the dry twigs crackled !
What a smoke and what a fragrance there was ! At last everything burst
out into fiame ; the old bird Phcrnix was reduced to ashes ; but his egg lay
red-hot in the fire; it broke with a loud report, and the young bird Hew
out. Now it is ruler over all birds, and the only bird Phoenix in the
world. He has bitten a hole in the palm-leaf I gave you. That is his
greeting to the princess."

"Let us now get something to eat," said the mother of the winds, and
then all sat down to eat of the roasted stag. The prince sat next to the
East Wind, and therefore they soon became good friends.

"Just tell me," said the prince, " what sort of a princess it is you are
talking so much about, and where is the Garden of Paradise r "

" Ho, ho ! " said the East Wind ; " if you want to go there, you must
riy with me to-morrow. But I had better tell vou that no human beings
have been there since the days of Adam and Eve. ^'ou know them, of
course, from your Bible history."

" Yes, of course," said the prince.

" Well, when they were driven away from the Garden of Paradise, it
sank into the earth, but it retained its warm sunshine, its balmy air, and all
its magnificence. The queen of the fairies lives there. There lies the
Island of Happiness, where death never comes, where it is delightful to
dwell. Sit on my back to-morrow, and I will take you with me. I
think it can be managed. But now you must not talk any more, for
I want to go to sleep."

And so they all went to sleep.

It was earlv morning when the prince awoke, and he was not a little
bewildered to find that he was already high up above the clouds. He
was sitting on the back of the East Wind, who stuck to him faithfully.
They were so high up in the air that forests and fields, rivers and seas,
looked just as they do on a large colored map.

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 427

"Good morning," said the East Wind. "You might just as well
have slept a little longer, for there is not much to be seen in the tiat
country below us, unless you would like to count the churches. They
stand out just like chalk spots down on the green-board." It was the
fields and meadows he called the green-board.

"It was rude t)f me not to say farewell to vour mother and brothers,"
said the prince.

"When one is asleep one must be excused," said the East Wind; and
then thev Hew on taster than ever. One could notice it by the tops of
the trees. When they swept past them there was a violent rustling among
the branches and the leaves. You could hear it on the sea and the lakes,
for wherever they Hew the waves rose higher and higher, and the large
ships dipped down into the water like swimming swans.

Toward evening, as it grew dark, it was most interesting to watch the
great towns. Lights were burning here and there down below. They looked
just like the many little sparks of fire you see rushing about when you
have burned a piece of paper, just like children running home from school.
And the prince clapped his hands with joy ; but the East Wind asked him
to let that alone, and rather to hold on fast, else he might easily fall down
and find himself hanging on to a church steeple.

The eagle of the dark forests fiew fast enough, but the East Wind fiew
still faster. The Cossack on his little steed dashed swiftly along the plains,
but the prince swept along quite difi-erentlv.

"Now you can see the Himalayas," said the East Wind. "They are
the highest mountains in Asia. We shall soon reach the Garden of
Paradise." They then turned more to the south, and soon they noticed
a fragrance of spices and fiowers in the air. Figs and pomegranates grew
wild, and the wild vines were hung with blue and red grapes. Here they
both alighted and stretched themselves on the soft grass, where the fiowers
were nodding to the wind as if they wanted to say : " Welcome back
again ! "

"Are we now in the Cxarden of Paradise r " asked the prince.

"No, of course not," answered the East Wind; "but we shall soon be
there now. Do you see the mountain side yonder, and the big cavern
where the vines are hanging down like large green curtains? We shall
have to pass through there. Wrap yourself in your cloak. Here the sun
is scorching, but one step further and it is icy cold. The bird which flies
past the cavern has one wing in the warm summer out here, and the
other in the cold weather in there."

"So this is the way to the Garden of Paradise ? " asked the prince.

They then went into the cavern. Ugh! how icy cold it was! But it
did not last long. The East Wind spread out his wings, which gleamed
like the brightest fire. But what a cavern ! The large blocks of stone
from which the water was dripping hung above them in the most

428 THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

wonderful shapes. Sometimes the passage was so narrow that they had to
creep on their hands and knees, and at other times they came into spaces
so lofty and extensive that they might have been in the open air. The
places looked like chapels for the dead, with silent organ pipes and
petrified banners.

" We seem to be going through the Valley of Death to the Garden of
Paradise," said the prince. But the East Wind did not not answer a word,
but pointed forward, where the most lovely light was shining in dazzling
brightness. The blocks of stone above their heads became more and
more faint and misty in appearance, till at last they looked like white
clouds on a moonlight night.

They were now in the most delightful mild air — fresh as if it had
come from the mountains, and as fragrant as from among the roses of the
valley.

They then came to a river which was as clear as the air itself, and
where the fishes were like silver and gold. Scarlet eels, which emitted
blue sparks of lire at every movement, were playing about down in the
water, and the broad leaves of the water-lilies shone in all the colors of
the rainbow. The flower itself was a reddish-yellowish burning Hame,
which was fed with water just as a lamp is always kept burning by oil. A
bridge of solid marble of most artistic and delicate workmanship, as if it
were made of lace and crystal pearls, led across the water to the Isle of
Happiness, where the Garden of Paradise llourished.

The East Wind took the prince in his arms and carried him across.
There the flowers and leaves were singing the most lovely melodies of his
youth, but more exquisitely than any human voice could ever sing.

Were they palm-trees or gigantic water-plants that grew here.? The
prince had never beheld such large and sappy trees. The most wonderful
creepers hung in long festoons between the trees in such a way as can only
be seen depicted in colors and gold in the margin of old missals, or
twisted round the letters of the chapters. It was the most weird combina-
tion of birds, flowers, and flourishes.

On the grass close by a flock of peacocks was standing with their
gorgeous tails spread out. Yes; surely that must be so! But no; when
the prince touched them he saw they were not birds, but plants. They
were large burdocks which here were as radiant as the beautiful tail of the
peacock. A lion and tiger were running about like agile cats among the
green hedges, the fragrance of which was like that of the flowers of the
olive-tree. Both the lion and the tiger were tame. The wild wood-
pigeon, which shone as the brightest pearl, struck the lion on the mane
with his wings as he flew past, and the antelope, which is usually so shy,
stood nodding his head as if he also wanted to gambol with them.

Then the Fairy of Paradise appeared. Her clothes shone like the sun,
and her face was as kind and as gentle as that of the joyous Madonna in

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 431

the picture where she is represented as being extremely happy over her
Child. She was young and beautiful, and was accompanied by the most
beautiful maidens, each with a shining star in her hair.

l"he East Wind gave her the palm-leaf with the inscribed words from
bird Ph(L>nix, which made her eyes sparkle. She took the prince by the
hand and conducted him into her palace, where the walls were of the
color of the most splendid tulip-leaf when held up to the sun. The
ceiling itself was one large radiant Hower, and the longer you gazed up
into it the deeper did its cup appear. The prince stepped to a window
and looked out through one of the panes, when he saw the Tree of
Knowledge with the Serpent, and Adam and Eve standing close by. " Were
they not banished r" he asked. And the fairy smiled, and explained to him
that upon each pane time had burned its pictures, but not as we are accus-
tomed to see pictures. No; there was life in each one. The leaves on
the trees moved; people came and went just as the reflected pictures we
see in a mirror. Then he looked through another pane, and there he saw
Jacob's Dream, where the ladder reached right up to heaven, and angels
with large wings were soaring to and fro. Yes; everything that had
happened in this world lived and moved on these panes; such wonderful
pictures time only could produce.

The fairy smiled, and conducted him into a large and lofty hall, the
walls of which consisted of transparent paintings with faces the one more
beautiful than the other. They were millions of happy beings, who
smiled and sang till their song melted into one melody. The uppermost
were so small that they appeared smaller than the smallest rosebud when
drawn as little dots on paper.

And in the middle of the hall stood a large tree with luxuriant
hanging branches, on which golden apples, large and small, hung like
oranges among the green leaves.

It was the Tree of Knowledge, of the fruit of which Adam and Eve
had eaten. From every leaf fell a bright red dewdrop, as if the tree was
weeping tears of blood.

"Let us now get into the boat," said the fairy. "There we will have
our repast while out on the billowy water. The boat will roll, but it will
not move away from the spot. Meanwhile all the countries of the world
will glide past before our eyes."

And it was a wonderful sight to see how the whole coast moved
past.

There came the lofty snow-clad Alps, with clouds and dark pine-trees.
The horn sounded so melancholy and the shepherd was yodeling so mer-
rily in the valley. And now the banana-trees bent their long, drooping
branches over the boat, coal-black swans glided about on the water, and
the strangest ot animals and flowers were to be seen on the shore. It was
New Holland, the fifth part of the world, which with its background of

432 THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

blue mountains glided past. They heard the song of the priests, and saw
the dance of the savages to the sound of drum and bone trumpets.

The pyramids of Egypt, reaching up to the clouds, overturned col-
umns, and Sphinxes, half buried in the sand, sailed past them. The Northern
lights glittered over the glacial mountains of the North — no fireworks
could come up to this display.

The prince was highly delighted. He saw, of course, a hundred times
more than what we are relating here.

"And can I always remain here.-" he asked.

"That depends upon yourself," answered the fairv. "If, unlike
Adam, you do not let yourself be tempted to do what is forbidden, then
you can remain here forever."

"I shall not touch the apples on the Tree of Knowledge," said the
prince. "Here are thousands of fruits just as beautiful as they."

"Examine yourself, and if vou do not feel strong enough, return with
the East Wind, who brought you here. He is now going to Hv back, and
will not be here again for a hundred years. That time will here pass as
quickly as if it were only a hundred hours, but it is a long time if one is
exposed to temptation and sin.

"Every evening, when I leave you, I must cry out to you, 'Come with
me!' I shall have to beckon to you with my hand, but you must remain
behind. Do not follow, for if you do your longing will increase with
every step vou take. You will come into the hall where the Tree of
Knowledge is growing. I shall be asleep under its fragrant, drooping
branches. You will bend over me, and I shall smile ; but if you press a
kiss upon my lips Paradise will then sink deep into the earth and be lost
to vou. The cutting wind of the desert will sweep past you ; the cold
rain will drip from your hair. Sorrow and tribulation will be your
inheritance."

" I shall remain here," said the prince. And the East Wind kissed
him on his forehead and said, " Be strong, and we shall meet here again in
a hundred years. Farewell, farewell ! " And the East Wind spread out
his large wings. They shone like the sheet-lightning in the autumn, or the
Northern lights in the cold winter.

"Farewell, farewell!" resounded from Hou ers and trees. Storks and
pelicans flew after him in a long row like streaming ribands, and followed
him to the boundary of the garden.

" Now the dancing will begin," said the fairy. "Toward the end, when
I shall be dancing with you, you will see me beckoning to you just as the
sun is sinking. You will hear me calling out to you, ' Come with me ! ' But
do not do it. For a hundred years I must repeat it. Each time when that
period is over you will gain more strength, and at last you will never think
of it. To-night is the first time, and I have warned you."

The fairy then conducted him into a large hall of white, transparent lilies.

riM'.RE SHE WAR I.VINC, ASLKKP AND LOOKINC AS )!EAUriran,

THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 435

The yellow stamens of each flower made a miniature golden harp, which re-
sounded with delicious music, as if from both strings and flutes. The most
lovely maidens, with slender, graceful figures, and robed in wavy gauze,
through which one could see their lovely limbs, floated past them in the
dance, and sang of the happiness of life — how they would never die, and
how the Garden of Paradise would flourish forever.

VV^hen the sun went down the whole sky became one sheet of gold, and
shed the hue of the loveliest roses upon the lilies, and the prince drank of
the foaming wine which the maidens handed him, and felt a bliss he never
before had experienced. He saw how the background opened: beyond
stood the Tree oi' Knowledge in a halo of luster which dazzled his eyes.
The singing that reached his ears was soft and beautiful as his mother's voice,
and it seemed as if she were singing, " My child, my beloved child ! "

The fairy then beckoned to him and called out lovingly, "Come with
me, come with me! " And he rushed after her, forgetting his promise — for-
getting k on the very first evening; and she went on, beckoning and smiling
to him. The spicy fragrance in the air became stronger and stronger, the
harps sounded lovelier, and it seemed as if the millions of faces on the walls
of the hall where the tree grew nodded and sang, "One should know all;
man is the lord of the earth." It was no longer drops of blood that fell
from the leaves of the Tree of Knowledge ; they appeared to him to be
red, glittering stars.

"Come with me! come with me! " went on the trembling tones, and
at every step the cheeks of the prince burned more hotly, and his blood
flowed more quickly.

"I must," he said. "It is no sin; it cannot be. Whv not pursue
beauty and joy ? I must see her asleep ! No harm will come of it if I
only do not kiss her. And that I shall not do. I am strong ; I have
a firm will."

And the fairy threw aside her dazzling robe, bent back the branches,
and in a moment was hidden beneath them.

"I have not yet sinned," said the prince, "and I will not;" and then
he pushed the branches aside. There she lay already asleep, and looking as
beautiful as only the fairy in the Garden of Paradise can look. She smiled
in her dreams. Bending over, he saw tears trembling on her eyelashes.

"Do you weep for me?" he whispered. "Do not weep, thou loveliest
of women ! Now only do I understand the happiness of Paradise. It
courses through my blood, through my thoughts. I feel the strength and
the eternal life of the cherub in my mortal body. Let eternal night come !
One moment like this is reward enough ! " And he kissed the tears from
her eyes; his mouth touched her lips. Just then came a loud and terrible
clap of thunder such as had never before been heard by any one, and
everything tumbled together. The beautiful fairy, the lovely Paradise
sank ; everything sank deeper and deeper.

24*

436 THE GARDEN OF PARADISE

In the darkness of the night the prince saw it sinking till at last he
could only see it beaming like a little glittering star in the far distance. A
deadly chill shot through his limbs. He closed his eves, and lav long like
one dead.

The cold rain fell upon his lace and the cutting wind blew about his
head when he came to himself "What have I done?" he sighed. "I
have sinned, like Adam! Sinned, so that Paradise has sunk far beyond
me!" And he opened his eyes. The far-away star — the star that had
glittered like the sunken Paradise — he could still see. It was the morning
star in the sky.

He sat up and found himself in the big forest close to the cavern of
the winds, with the mother of the winds sitting bv his side. She looked
angry, and was just going to lift her arms against him.

"And the first evening, too ! " she said. " I thought as much. Well,
if you were my boy I should put you into the bag."

"And into it he shall go ! " said a voice. It was Death. He was a
tall old man with a scythe in his hand, and with large black wings. "In
the coffin he shall be put, but not just yet. I shall onlv put mv mark
upon him, and shall let him wander about in the world yet a while to
atone for his sin and become a better man. But I shall come some day.
When he least expects it I shall put him into the black coffin, and take it
on my head and fly up toward the star. There also blossoms the Garden
ot Paradise, and it he is good and pious he shall be allowed to enter it ;
but if his thoughts be wicked, and his heart still be full of sin, then
he shall sink with his coffin still deeper than he saw^ the Garden of
Paradise sink, and only once in every thousandth year shall I fetch
him again, either to sink still deeper or to remain in the star — the star
up yonder."

THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDE-
MAR DAA AND HIS DAUGHTERS

BV THE SHORE OF THE GREAT BELT STANDS AN OLD MANSION
WITH THICK RED WALLS.

THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA'
AND HIS DAUGHTERS

WHEN the wind sweeps over the grass the meadow ripples Uke a
lake, and when it sweeps over the corn the whole held moves in
waves like the sea ; it is the dance of the wind — but listen to
him telling stories. He sings them out loudlv ; among the trees in the
forest it sounds quite different to when it blows through holes, cracks, and
crevices in the walls. Do you see how the wind up there is chasing the
clouds as if they were a Hock of sheep ? Do you hear how the wind down
here is howling through the open gate, as if it were a watchman blowing
his horn r With strange sounds it whistles down the chimney and into
the tireplace. The tire flares up and sends out sparks, and throws a light
tar into the room, where it is so snug and pleasant to sit and listen to it.
Only let the wind speak. He knows more fairv tales and stories than
all of us put together. Just listen to what he is telling : "Whew ! — ugh ! —
whew ! Rush along ! " is the burden of his song.

" By the shore of the Great Belt stands an old mansion with thick red
walls," begins the wind. " I know every stone oi' it ; I have seen them

' Pronounced in Danish as "Daw."
439

440 THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA

before, when they formed part of Marsk Stig's castle on the promontory,
but it had to be pulled down. The stones were used again for the walls of
a new mansion and another place, which became Borreby House, and still
stands there. I have seen and known the noble barons and ladies of many
generations, who one after another had lived there ; but now I am going
to tell you about Valdemar Daa and his daughters.

" He carried himself proudlv, for he was of roval descent. He could
do something more than hunt a stag or empty a beaker ; things will come
all right in the end, as he used to say.

" His wife, dressed in gold-embroidered robes, walked proudly across her
brightly polished parquet floors ; the tapestries were magnificent, the fur-
niture most costly and artistically carved. He had brought gold and sil-
ver plate with him to the house ; in the cellar was German beer, when
there was any, and in the stables black, spirited horses were neighing; there
was abundance of wealth at Borrebv House, when wealth was there.

"There were three children — three fair maidens, Ida, Johanne, and
Anna Dorthea ; I still remember the names.

"They were rich, hne folks, born and bred in luxury. Whew! — ugh!
— whew ! Rush along!" said the wind; and so he went on again.

" I did not see here, as in other old mansions, the high-born lady
sitting in the great hall, with her maidens around her turning the spinning-
wheel ; she played on the sonorous lute and sang thereto, not always the
old Danish ballads, but songs in foreign languages. There was feasting and
merriment ; there came grand folks from near and far, the music sounded,
the beakers clinked ; I could not drown the noise," said the wind.
" Here ruled pride in all its ostentatious display ; but the fear of the Lord
was not there.

"And so it happened one May-day evening," said the wind, "that I
came from the west, after having seen ships being crushed and wrecked on
Jutland's western shore; I rushed on over the heath and wood-girt coast,
and over the Island of Fiinen ; I had just come across the CJreat Belt's
panting and blowing.

" I then settled down to rest on Zealand's coast, close to Borrebv
House, where the forest with its magnificent oak-trees was still tlour-
ishing.

"The young men from the district came out here to gather twigs
and branches, the largest and driest they could find, which they took with
them into the village ; here they put them into a heap and set fire to them,
while the lads and lasses danced round and round.

"I lay still," said the wind, "but I gently touched one bfanch — the one
which the handsomest lad had put on the pile; his fagot fiared up, its fiames
shooting higher than the others. He was the favored one, received the pet
name, became the cock-of-the-walk, and was the first to choose his little
pet lamb among the lasses. There were rejoicings and merriment far

AND HIS DAUGHTERS 441

greater than at the wealthy Borreby House. And the noble lady and her
three daughters came driving toward the mansion in a gilded coach drawn
by six horses. The daughters were young and beautiful — three delicate
flowers, the rose, the lilv, and the pale hyacinth. The mother herself was
a gorgeous tulip ; she did not return the salutations ot any in the whole
crowd, who paused in their sport to drop courtesies and go on their knees
before her; one would have thought the good lady's neck had been made
as brittle as glass. The rose, the lily, and the pale hyacinth ! Yes, I saw
them all three. Whose pet lamb would they one day become? thought I.
Their lord and master will be a gallant knight, perhaps a prince. Whew !
— Ligh ! — whew! Rush along! Rush along!

"The carriage rolled away with them, and the peasants ran back to
their dancing. They went a-maying to Borreby, to Fjsreby, and to all
the villages in the neighborhood.

"But in the night, when I arose," said the wind, "the grand lady lay
down to rise no more; death overtook her, as it will overtake us all —
there is nothing new in that. Valdemar Daa remained grave and thought-
ful for a time; the strongest tree can be twisted but not broken, said
something within him ; the daughters cried, and at the mansion all were
drying their tears; but Lady Daa had rushed away — and I rushed away!
Whew! — ugh! — whew!" said the wind.

"I came back again — I came back often across the Island of Funen
and the waters of the Belt; I rested down by Borreby shore, by the noble
oak forest, where the osprey, the wood-pigeon, the blue raven, and even
the black stork built their nests. It was early in the year ; some were
sitting on their eggs, some had nestlings. How they fluttered, how they
cried ! The sound of the ax was heard, blow upon blow ; the forest was
to be cut down. Valdemar Daa wanted to build a big ship, a man-of-war,
a three-decker, which the king would be sure to buy; and therefore the
forest — the sailors' landmark, the home of the birds — was doomed. The
shrike flew away frightened — its nest was destroyed; the osprey and all the
birds of the forest lost their home, and flew wildly about, crying in fear
and anger. I understood them well. Crows and jackdaws croaked jeer-
ingly: 'From the nest! From the nest! Croak! croak!'

"And in the midst of the forest, among the crowd of workmen, stood
Valdemar Daa and his three daughters, and all were laughing at the wild
cries of the birds; but the youngest daughter, Anna Dorthea, felt grieved
in her heart, and when ihey were going to tell a tree that was nearly dead,
upon the naked branches of which the black stork had built his nest, and
from which the young nestlings stretched out their necks, she praved, with
tears in her eyes, for them ; and so the tree with the nest of the black
stork was allowed to remain standing. It was not of much consequence.

"Trees were cut and logs were sawn; they were building the big ship.

442 THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA

the three-decker. The master shipbuilder was of low birth, but of noble
mien; his eyes and forehead spoke of great intellect; and \'aldemar Daa
used to listen with pleasure to his stories, and so did little Ida, his eldest
daughter, now fifteen years old. While he was building the ship for the
father he built a castle in the air for himself, where he and little Ida should
preside as man and wife; all of which might have happened if the castle
had been one built of stone, with ramparts and moats, forests and gardens.
But with all his talents, the master shipbuilder was only a poor man, after
all ; and what business has a sparrow among the cranes, as the saying is ?
Whew! — ugh! — whew! I flew away, and so did he, for he dared not
remain; and little Ida got over it — there was no help for it.

"The black horses were neighing in the stables; they were noble
steeds, well worth looking at, and grand folk came to see them. The
admiral, who was sent by the king to inspect the new man-of-war and to
arrange about its purchase, spoke in great praise of the high-spirited
horses. I heard it all," said the wind; "I followed the grand folk
through the open door, and strewed stalks of straw like bars of gold before
their feet. Valdemar Daa wanted gold, and the admiral wanted the
horses, for he was always praising them ; but Daa did not understand the
hint, and so the ship was not purchased, either.

" There it stood on the beach, bright and new. It was then covered
over with boards, and looked like a Noah's ark which was never to take
to the water. Whew! — ugh! — whew! Rush along ! Rush along! Oh,
it was a pity !

"During the winter," said the wind, "when the fields were covered
with snow, and the belts choked with drift ice which I drove up against
the coast, there came large flocks of ravens and crows, the one blacker
than the other, which settled down on the desolate, lonely ship on the
beach, and screamed hoarsely, looking for the forest which vVas no more,
and for the many cozv nests which had been destroyed. Poor, homeless
birds, old and young! And all this for the sake of that big piece of lumber,
the noble ship which was never to sail on the sea !

"I whirled up the snowflakes around it till they lay like a sea of snow
over it all. I let it hear my voice, so that it might know what a storm
has got to say; I know I did mv best to give it a lesson in seamanship.
Whew ! — ugh ! — whew ! Rush along !

"And the winter passed; winters and summers have passed, and will
continue to pass away, just as I pass away and rush along, like the drifting
snow, like the apple blossoms and the falling leaves. Rush along! Rush
along! Rush along! Men and women pass away, too!

"But the daughters were still young; little Ida was a rose, fair and
beautiful to behold, just as when the master shipbuilder saw her. I often
caught hold of her long brown hair when she stood buried in thought by

A FIRE WAS

ALWAYS BURNING ON HIS HEARTH; THE DOOR TO HIS CHAMBER W.
AND THERE HE WORKED FOR DAYS AND NIGHTS.

THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA 445

the apple-tree in the garden and did not notice that I sprinkled Howers on
her hair, which became disheveled, and while she gazed at the red sun
and the golden sky through the dark trees and bushes in the garden.

"Her sister Johanne was fair and erect as a lily; she bore herselt well
and held her head high, and, like her mother, little inclined to bend her
neck. She was fond of walking up and down in the large hall where the
family portraits were hanging; the ladies were painted in dresses of velvet
and silk, with tiny little hats, embroidered with pearls, on their plaited
hair. They were beautiful women. Their husbands were to be seen clad
in armor or costly cloaks lined with the fur of squirrels, and with the blue
ruff. The sword was buckled round their thigh, and not round the loin.
Where would her own portrait hang some day, and what would her noble
husband be like? Such were the thoughts that occupied her mind. I
heard her talking half aloud to herself about it as I rushed along the
passage into the hall and turned round on my way out.

"Anna Dorthea, the pale hyacinth, was only a child fourteen years old,
quiet and thoughtful. Her large, deep-blue eyes were dreaming, but a
childlike smile still played round her mouth. I could not blow it away,
and I did not wish to do so, either.

" I met her in the garden, in the narrow lanes, and in the fields where
she was gathering herbs and flowers. She knew her father used them for
making drinks and household drugs which he knew how to distil.
Valdemar Daa was proud and haughty, but he was also learned and
possessed great knowledge, — one could not help noticing that, — and all
sorts of rumors were afloat in consequence. A fire was always burning on
his hearth, even in the summer time. The door to his chamber was
locked, and there he worked for days and nights ; but he did not talk
much about it. The elements of nature must be conquered in the dead
of night. Soon he would discover the greatest secret of all — that of
making the red gold.

"That was the reason why the smoke rose from the chimney, why the
fire was burning and crackling on the hearth. Yes; I was there," the wind
said. "'Let it be, let it be!' I sang through the chimney; 'it will all
end in smoke, embers, and ashes. You will burn yourself. Whew ! — ugh !
— whew! Let it be, let it be ! ' But Valdemar Daa did not let it be.

"What has become of the splendid horses in the stable .? of the old
silver and gold plate in the cupboards and closets? of the cow in the fields?
of house and home? Yes; they melt — they all melt in the crucible, but
they have not yet yielded any gold.

"The barns and storehouses, the cellars and larders, were empty. The
less people the less mice. One window broke, another cracked. I need
not wait to get in through the door," said the wind. "Where smoke
rises from the chimney there 's roasting going on ; but the smoke that
came from this chimney devoured food, and all for the sake of the
red gold.

446 THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA

"I blew through the gateway like a watchman blowing his horn, but
no watchman was there," said the wind. " I turned the vane on the spire;
it grated as if the watchman was snoring in the tower, but there was no
watchman. There were rats and mice. Poverty laid the table-cloth ;
poverty sat in the wardrobe and in the larder. The doors fell off their
hinges ; cracks and crevices appeared everywhere ; I could go in and out,"
said the wind, "and that is how I know all about it.

" In smoke and in ashes, in sorrow and sleepless nights, his beard and
hair became gray, his skin furrowed and yellow, while his eyes searched
greedily for the gold — the much longed for gold.

"I blew the smoke and ashes into his face and beard. Debts increased,
but no gold came. I sang through the broken panes and open cracks ; I
blew into the daughters' wardrobe, where their clothes lay faded and
threadbare, for they had to last for a long time. That was not the kind
of song which had been sung at their cradles. A life of luxury had
become one of penury. I was the only one who sang merrily in the
mansion," said the wind. "I snowed them up. Snow makes a place
snug, they say. Of firewood they had none. The forest whence they
should fetch it had been cut down. It was bitterly cold. I rushed
in through holes and crevices and along the passages, over gables and
walls, to keep myself in practice, while within the daughters of high
degree kept their bed because of the cold, and the father crouched under
his fur coverlet. Nothing to eat, no fire on the hearth; what a life for
people of high degree ! Whew! — ugh! — whew! Rush along! But the
lord of the manor could not do that.

"'After winter comes spring,' said he. '.After hard times come
good; but thev are a long time coming. Everything is mortgaged.
We arc at our last extremity, and then the gold will come — at Easter.'

" I heard him mumbling to the spider in his web : ' You diligent little
weaver! You are teaching me to hold out. If your web is torn, you
begin again and make it whole. If torn again, vou patiently set to work
again from the beginning — from the beginning. That is what one must
do ; and then comes the reward.'

"It was Easter morning. The bells were ringing and the sun was
shining brightly in the sky. In feverish excitement he had watched,
melted, mixed, and distilled. I heard him sigh like a soul in despair ; I
heard him pray; I noticed he held his breath. The lamp had burned out,
but he did not notice it. I fanned the embers, which threw a reddish
glare over his white face. His eyes were sunk deep in their sockets, but
now they grew bigger and bigger, as if they would burst.

"Look at the alchemist's glaSvs! Something glitters in it. It seems to
glow, it is pure, it is heavy. With trembling hands he lifts it up. With
a quivering voice he exclaimed, 'Gold! gold!' He grew dizzy at the
sight. I could easily have blown him over," said the wind, "hut I only

IIKIK I All

THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA 449

fanned the glowing embers and followed him through the door to where
his daughters lay shivering. His robe was covered with ashes ; they were
clinging to his beard and his tangled hair. He drew himself up and held
aloft the brittle glass with his great treasure.

'"Found! found ! Gold!' he shouted, holding the glass still higher
as it glittered in the rays of the sun. The hand trembled ; the alchemist's
glass fell on the floor and broke into a thousand pieces. The last bubble
ot his wealth had burst. Whew ! — ugh ! — whew ! Rush along ! And away
I rushed from the goldmaker's abode.

"Late in the year, when the days are short up here in the North, and
when the fog comes with its misty veil and drops dew on the red berries
and the leafless branches, I felt in good spirits, stirred up the air,
swept the sky clear, and broke off all the rotten branches ; it is no great
task, but it has to be done. At Valdemar Daa's Borreby House there
was another kind of clearing out. His enemy, Ove Ramel, from Basnas,
had arrived with the mortgages on the estate, and on all the goods and
chattels, which he had bought up. I drummed at the dilapidated doors
and whistled through all the cracks and crevices: Whew! — ugh I Master
Ove should not take a fancy to live there ! Ida and Anna Dorthea cried
bitterly ; Johanne stood pale and erect, biting her thumb till it bled. Of
what did it avail ? Ove Ramel offered Valdemar Daa leave to remain on
the estate during his lifetime, but he did not even receive thanks for his
offer. I listened to them ; I saw the homeless master lift his head still
higher and toss it back proudly ; I sent such a gust against the house and
the old linden trees that one of the thickest branches broke — one that was
not rotten. It lay in front of the gate like a big broom, if any one should
want to sweep out the place; and a great sweeping out there was. I
thought there would be ! It was a trying day, a difficult time to main-
tain one's dignity; but the soul was hardened, the will was obstinate.

"They possessed nothing but the clothes they had on, except the
alchemist's glass, which had just been bought and filled with the spillings
that had been scraped up from the floor — the treasure which had promised
so much, but failed to keep its promise. V^ildemar Daa hid it in his
bosom and took his staff in his hand ; and the once wealthy nobleman,
with his three daughters, walked out of Borreby House. I blew cold
gusts against his flushed cheeks, I patted his long white hair, and I sang as
best I could. Whew I — ugh! — whew! Rush along ! Rush along!
That was the end of all the wealth and splendor.

" Ida and Anna Dorthea walked one on each side of him ; Johanne
turned round at the gateway; but what was the good.? Their luck was
not likely to turn. While looking at the red stones of Marsk Stig's castle
did she think of his daughters ?

" The eldest took the youngest by the hand.
And wandered far into the world.

450 THE WIND TELLS ABOUT VALDEMAR DAA

" Was she thinking of the old ballad r They were three, and their father
was also with them. They walked along the road where they used to
drive in their carriage ; now they went forth with their father as beggars
to Smidstrup field, to the mud hut which thev had rented for ten marks a
year. This was to be their new mansion, with empty walls and empty
jars. Crows and jackdaws fiew over them croaking, as if jeering at them,
* From the nest ! from the nest ! Caw ! caw ! ' as the birds had done in
Borreby forest when the trees were cut down.

"Valdemar Daa and his daughters understood them well. I whistled
round about their ears ; it was not worth listening to.

"So they entered the mud hut in Smidstrup field, and I rushed along
over marshes and fields, through bare bushes and leafless trees, to the open
water, to other lands. Whew! — ugh! — whew! Rush along! Rush
along! Year after year."

How did it fare with Valdemar Daa, and how did it fare with his
daughters ? The wind will tell us.

"The one I saw last was Anna Dorthea, the pale hyacinth; she was
then old and crooked ; it was fifty years afterward. She lived the longest,
and she knew all about it.

" Over yonder on the heath, close to Viborg town, lay the dean's new
and handsome house, built of red stone and with pointed gables. The
smoke curled thickly out from the chimney. The gentle mistress of the
house and her beautiful daughters sat in the bay-window and looked out
over the hanging box-thorn to the brown heath. What were they looking
at ? They were looking at the stork's nest on the tumbledown hut over
there. The roof, as far as there was any roof, consisted of moss and house-
leek ; that which covered the greatest part of the hut was the stork's
nest, and that was the only part of it which was looked after, for the stork
kept it in order.

" It was a house onlv to be looked at, not to be touched. I had to be
careful," said the wind. "The house was allowed to stand for the sake of
the stork's nest, although it was a disgrace to the heath. The dean would
not drive the stork away, so the old shed was left standing, and the poor
body inside it was allowed to live there. She had to thank the Egyptian
bird for that, or was it not a return for her kindness when she interceded
for the nest of his wild black brother in Borrebv forest r She was then,
poor thing, a young child, a delicate pale hyacinth in the noble garden.
She, Anna Dorthea, remembered it all.

"'Alas! alas!' she sighed; for people can sigh, just as the wind
sighs among the reeds and rushes. ' Alas ! no bells were rung when you
were buried, Valdemar Daa ! The boys from the charity school did not
sing when the late master of Borreby was laid to rest. Alas ! everything
comes to an end, even misery. Sister Ida became a peasant's wite; that

AND HIS DAUGHTERS

451

was the hardest trial our father had to go through. His daughter's
husband, a miserable serf, whose master could make him mount the
wooden horse, — I suppose he is underground by this. And you too,
Ida. Alas! alas! It is not ended yet — poor miserable body that I am !
Oh, release me, kind Jesus ! '

"That was Anna Dorthea's prayer in the wretched hut, which was
allowed to stand only for the sake of the stork.

" I did what I could for the bravest of the sisters," said the wind ; "she
cut her coat according to her cloth.

" She dressed as a lad and went to a skipper and got a berth on his ship ;
she was chary of words, and sullen in appearance, but willing at her work.
But she could not climb the rigging — so I blew her overboard before
anybody knew she was a woman ; and I think I did the right thing," said
the wind.

"It was on an Easter morning, just like the one when Valdemar Daa
thought he had discovered the red gold, that I heard a hymn being sung
under the stork's nest within the rickety walls. It was Anna Dorthea's
last song. There was no window — -only a hole in the wall. The sun
came like a bright lump of gold and shone through it. What a luster !
Her eyes were growing dim ; her heart was breaking. That would have
happened even if the sun had not shone in upon her that morning.

" The stork had provided her with a roof till her death. I sang at her
grave," said the wind — "her father's grave. I know where he lies and
where she lies. Nobody else knows.

" New times, other ways. The old road has become a plowed held.
Over the peaceful graves runs the busy highroad, and soon the railway
with its train of carriages will come and rush over the graves, which will
be forgotten like their names. Whew! — ugh! — whew! Rush along!

" This is the story of Valdemar Daa and his daughters. Tell it better, anv
of you, if you can," said the wind, and turned about. And then it was gone.

THE GALLANT TIN SOLDIER

ALL THE TIN SOLDIKRS WERE MADE FROM THE SAME OLD TL\ SPOON.

THE GALLANT TIN SOLDIER

TFIERE were once hve-and-twentv tin soldiers. They were all
brothers, because they were born of the same old tin spoon. They
all shouldered their muskets, they all looked straight before them,
and they all had the same splendid uniform — red and blue. The first
words they heard in this world, when the lid was taken off the box in
which they were lying, were: "Tin soldiers! " It was a little boy who
shouted this as he clapped his hands in delight at seeing the soldiers.
They had just been given to him as a present, because it was his birthday.
He began putting them on the table. They were all exactly alike,
except one, and he had only one leg because he had been cast last of all,
and there was not tin enough to till the mold; but he stood just as firm
on his one leg as the others on their two, and it was just this soldier who
became famous.

On the table where they had been placed stood many other toys, but
the most remarkable ot all was a splendid castle made of cardboard. You
could see right into the rooms through the small windows. In front of
the castle some small trees were placed round a looking-glass which was
to represent a lake. Swans made of wax swam on the lake and watched
their retiection in it. It was altogether very pretty ; but the prettiest of
all was a little lady who was standing right outside the open gate of the
castle. She was also cut out of paper, but she had a skirt of the clearest
gauze, and a little, narrow blue ribbon over her shoulders, just like a scarf,
and in the middle of it was a bright spangle as big as her face. The little
lady stretched out both her arms, — she was a dancer, — and she lifted one
leg so high that the tin soldier could not see it, and he believed that she
had only one leg like himself "That 's the wife for me," he thought;
" but she is very grand : she lives in a castle. I have only a box, and
there are twenty-live of us in there already. It 's no place for her. But
I must try and get acquainted with her." And then he laid himself down
at full length behind a snuff-box which was on the table. There he could

^5* 455

456 THE GALLANT TIN SOLDIER

have a good look at- the elegant little ladv, who remained standing on one
leg without losing her balance.

Later on in the evening all the other tin soldiers were put back, in
their box, and the people in the house went to bed. Then the toys
commenced to play and amuse themselves. Thev played at "visiting," at
"making war," and at "giving balls." The tin soldiers were making a
noise in their box because they wanted to join in the fun, but they could
not get the lid off. The nut-cracker turned somersaults, and the slate
pencil did all sorts of tricks on the slate. There was such a noise that the
canarv woke up and began to chatter, and that in verse too. The only
two who did not stir from their places were the tin soldier and the little
dancer. She was standing on the tip of her toes, with both her arms
stretched out ; he remained quietly behind the snuff-box. He never took
his eyes off her for a moment. The clock struck twelve and — bounce!
— the lid riew off the snuff-box; but there was no snuff in it at all, only
a little black goblin. It was a kind of Jack-in-the-box, you know.

"Tin soldier," shouted the goblin, "will vou keep vour eyes to your-
self.?" But the tin soldier appeared as if he did not hear it. "Just wait
till to-morrow," said the goblin.

When the morning came and the children were up, the tin soldier was
put in the window ; but whether it was the goblin or the draught which
was the cause of it, the window flew open all of a sudden, and the soldier
fell head foremost from the third story. It was a terrible fall. There
he was, standing on his head, his bayonet sticking between two paving-
stones and his leg pointing up in the air. The servant girl and the
little boy ran down into the street at once to look for him ; but although
they very nearly trod upon him, they could not see him. If the soldier
would only have cried out, "Here I am ! " they could have found him;
but he thought it was beneath his dignity to shout aloud because he was
in uniform. It began to rain ; the drops fell faster and faster till they
poured down. When the rain was over two boys came past. "Look!"
cried one of them, "there 's a tin soldier! Let 's give him a sail." They
made a boat out of a newspaper and put the soldier in it, and soon he was
sailing along the gutter, while the two boys ran alongside him, clapping
their hands. What a rough sea there was in that gutter, and what a strong
tide there was running! But then it had been raining in torrents. The
paper boat rocked up and down, and now and then it turned about so
rapidly that the tin soldier was very nearly shaken overboard ; but he
stuck to it manfully, and did not even change countenance. He looked
straight before him, and grasped his musket. All of a sudden the boat
drifted into a drain, where it was just as dark as if he had been in his
box "I wonder where I am off to now?" he thought. ".Well, well, it
is all the doing of that goblin. Aha ! if the little lady were only here
along with me in the boat, I would not mind if it were twice as dark."

■ I\,, lai-.HT OUTSIDE THI. ' TJ A
Burn HER ARMS OUTSTKETCHEI

THE GALLANT TIN SOLDIER

459

Just then a large water-rat, who was living in the drain, saw him.
"Have you got a pass r " asked the rat. " Give me your pass ! " But the
tin soldier did not answer, and grasped his musket still tighter. The boat
rushed on, and the rat gave chase to it. How the rat gnashed his
teeth ! He shouted out to all the hits of wood and straw which were

floating
the tol

bout 11
he h;

the drain,
n't shown

" Stop him ! stop him ! He has
his pass ! " But the rush of the

n't paid
water in

rop him! stop him ! " shouted the kai

ING HIS TEETH,

NT SHOWN HIS PASS .

the drain carried the boat along faster and faster. The tin soldier could
already see the bright daylight at the end of the drain, but he heard at the
same time a roaring noise, which was enough to frighten even a bold man.
Only think, at the end oi' the drain the water rushed out into a big canal !
It was to him just as dangerous a passage as a big waterfall would be to us.
He was now so near this point that he could not stop the boat. The boat
darted out ; the poor tin soldier summoned up all his courage, and kept
himself steady — nobody should say of him that he moved a muscle. The
boat whirled round three or four times — it was filling with water to the
very edge — it must sink; the tin soldier stood up to his neck in water,
the boat sank deeper and deeper, and the paper was gradually giving way.

460 THE GALLANT TIN SOLDIER

The water had now reached up to the soldier's head ; he thought of the
beautiful little dancer, whom he should never see again ; the old nursery
rhyme was ringing in his ears:

Danger, danger, warrior bold,
Prepare to meet thy grave so cold I

At this moment the boat went to pieces, and the tin soldier was sinking
to the bottom when a great fish snapped him up and swallowed him.
What a dark place it was ! It was even darker than in the drain, and there
was so little room, too; but our gallant tin soldier did not flinch a bit;
he lay at full length, shouldering his musket. The hsh was rushing
about, and was struggling fearfully. At last he became quiet ; something
like a flash of lightning passed through him. It was broad daylight, and
somebody cried out, "A tin soldier!" The Hsh had been caught and
brought to market, where he was sold, and had now been carried up into
the kitchen, where the cook cut him open with a big knife. She took
the soldier and carried him into the parlor, where everybody wanted to
see the remarkable man who had traveled about in the stomach of a fish ;
but the tin soldier was not at all proud. They put him on the table, and
there — but no! — what wonderful things will happen in this world ! — the
tin soldier was in the very room where he fell out of the window; he
saw the same children, and the toys were all standing on the table ; there
was the beautiful castle, with the elegant little dancer. She was still
standing on one leg, and kept the other high in the air. Had she been
waiting for him ? The tin soldier was so much moved that he nearly
shed tears of tin, but it was not becoming. He looked at her and she
looked at him, but they did not say anything. Then one of the little
boys took the tin soldier and threw him right into the fire, without giving
any reason for doing so; it must have been the goblin in the box who
put this into his head.

The tin soldier stood there quite radiant ; he felt a heat that was
something terrible, but whether it was the heat from the fire or from his
love, he was not quite sure. The colors had quite gone off him, but
whether this had happened to him on his journey, or was caused by his
grief, no one could tell. He looked at the little lady, and she looked at
him ; he felt he was melting, but he remained firm, shouldering his
musket. Suddenly the door of the room flew open, the draft caught
the dancer, and she flew like a sylph straight into the stove to the tin
soldier; there was a blaze — and she was gone. The brave tin soldier
melted down into a little lump, and when the servant girl took out the
ashes next morning, she found him in the shape of a little tin heart. Of
the beautiful dancer remained only the spangle, and that was burned as
black as coal.

THE STORY OF A MOTHER

OVER IN THE CORNER THE OLD CLOCK WAS
WHIRRING ROUND.

THE STORY OF A MOTHER

A MOTHER was sitting by her little child. She was in great dis-
tress, for she feared it was going to die. It was so pale, its little
eyes were closed. It breathed slowly, and sometimes so deeply,
as if it were sighing ; and the mother looked still more sadly at the little
creature.

463

464 THE STORY OF A MOTHER

There was a knock at the door, and a poor old man came in. He
was wrapped in something hke a great horse-cloth. He was greatly in
need of something to keep him warm, for it was cold winter. Everything
out of doors was covered with ice and snow, and the wind blew so riercelv
that it cut one's face.

And as the old man was shivering with cold, and the little child hap-
pened to be sleeping for a moment, the mother got up and put a small
mug of beer on the stove to warm it for him. The old man sat down
and rocked the cradle, and the mother took a seat on the chair close by,
and looked at her sick child, which breathed so hard, and lifted its little
hand.

'• Don't you think I shall keep him?" she said. " God will not take
him from me."

And the old man — it was Death himself — nodded to her in such a
strange way, it might just as well mean yes as no. The mother cast down
her eyes, while the tears rolled down her cheeks. Her head was so heavy,

— for three nights and days she had not closed her eyes, — and soon she
dropped asleep, but only for a moment. Then she started up, shivering
with cold. " What is it .? " she exclaimed, and looked round on all sides.
But the old man was gone, and her little child was gone also. He had
taken it with him. Over in the corner the old clock was whirring and
whirring round; the heavy leaden weight ran right down to the floor

— bump ! — and the clock stopped also.

But the unhappy mother ran out of the house, calling for her child.

Out in the snow sat a woman in long black clothes, and she said:
" Death has been into your room. I saw him hurrving away with your
little child. He goes faster than the wind He never brings back what
he takes."

"Only tell me which wav he went," said the mother. "Tell me the
way, and I shall find him."

" I know it," said the woman in the black clothes. " But before I
tell you, you must sing to me all the songs you have sung for your child.
I love them ; I have heard them before. I am Night, and I have seen your
tears while you sang them."

"I will sing them all — all," said the mother. "But do not keep me,
so that I may overtake him, and find my child."

But Night sat dumb and still. The mother wrung her hands, sang, and
wept. There were many songs, but yet more tears, and then Night said :
" Go to the right, into the dark pine forest. I saw Death take the road
thither with your little child."

Far in the forest she came to a cross road, and she knew no longer which
way to take. Close by stood a hawthorn bush, on which were neither
leaves nor flowers, for it was cold winter time, and icicles hung from its
branches.

THE STORY OF A MOTHER 465

" Have you seen Death go by with my little child? "

" Yes," said the hawthorn. '• But I shall not tell you which way he
went, unless you first warm me against your bosom. I am freezing to
death. I shall soon be all ice."

And she pressed the hawthorn close to her bosom so that it might
be thoroughly warm ; but the thorns pierced her flesh, and her blood
flowed in great drops. The hawthorn shot forth fresh green leaves, and
flowers blossomed forth in the cold winter night — so warm is the
heart of a sorrowing mother. The hawthorn then told her the way she
should go.

At length she came to a great lake on which there was neither ship
nor boat. The lake was not sufficiently frozen to carry her, nor was it
open and shallow enough to allow her to wade across it, and across it she
must get if she wanted to find her child. So she laid herself down to
drink up the lake, which, of course, was impossible for a human being ;
but the distressed mother thought that a miracle might happen.

"No; that will never do," said the lake. "Let us rather make a
bargain. I am fond o( collecting pearls, and your eyes are the two
brightest pearls I have seen. If you will cry them out for me I will carry
you across to the big hothouse where Death lives and tends his flowers and
trees, each of which is a human life."

"Oh, what would I not give to reach my child ! " said the weeping
mother. And she continued to weep still more, till her eyes sank to the
bottom of the lake and became two precious pearls ; and the lake lifted her
up as if she sat in a swing, and carried her deftly to the shore on the other
side, where there stood a wonderful house many miles long. One could
not tell whether it was a mountain with forests and caverns, or whether it
had been built ; but the unhappy mother could not see it, for she had
cried her eyes out.

"Where shall I find Death, who took away my little child?" she
asked.

" He has not returned yet," said the old woman who went about
tending the plants and flowers in Death's large hothouse. " How did you
find your way here, and who has helped you ? "

"God has helped me," she said. "He is merciful, and vou must be
merciful, too. Where shall I find my little child ? "

"I do not know it," said the woman; "and you cannot see. Many
flowers and trees have withered away during the night. Death will soon
come and transplant them. You know, of course, that everv human being
has a lite-tree or life-flower, according as one's fate has been decided.
They look like other plants, but they have hearts which beat. Children's
hearts also beat. Go and search for it. Perhaps you will know vour
child's ; but what will you give me if I tell you what else you
should do ? "

466 THE STORY OF A MOTHER

"I have nothing to give," said the distressed mother; "but I will go
to the end of the world for you."

"I have nothing to do there," said the woman ; "but you can give me
your long black hair. Vou know yourself it is beautiful, and I like it.
You shall have my white hair instead, and that is something."

"Is that all you ask?" she said. "I give it you gladly." And she
gave her her beautiful black hair, and received the old woman's snow-
white hair in return.

They then went into the great hothouse of Death, where dowers and
trees grew so strangely together. There were delicate hyacinths under
glass shades, and large round peonies side by side ; there grew water-
plants — some looked fresh, others sickly; the water-sloes settled on them,
and black crayfish clung to their stems. There were beautiful palm-trees,
oaks, and plane-trees ; there were parsley and fragrant thyme. Every tree
and every Hower had its name, each of them representing the life of a
human being, of people still alive, — some in China, some in Greenland,
— all over the world. There were large trees in small pots. They
looked quite stunted in their growth, while the roots were nearly bursting
the pots. In several places there were also tiny sickly flowers in rich soil,
with moss around the stem, well nursed and tended. But the sorrowing
mother bent down over all the smallest plants, and heard the human
heart beating within them, and, among millions, she recognized that of
her child.

"Here it is! " she cried, and stretched out her hand over a little blue
crocus which hung drooping to one side.

"Do not touch the flower," said the old woman, "hut remain here,
and when Death comes — he may be here before we know of it — do not
let him pull up the plant; threaten that you will do the same with the
other flowers. That will frighten him, for he has to account to God for
every one of them. None must be pulled up before he has given his
permission."

All at once an ice-cold blast came rushing past them, and the blind
mother could feel it was Death that had come.

"How did you find your way here?" he asked. "How could you
travel faster than I ?"

"I am a mother," she said.

And Death stretched out his long hand toward the little delicate
flower; but she kept her hands closely around it — so closely, and yet so
anxious that she should not touch any of its leaves. Then Death breathed
upon her hands. The breath was colder than the cold wind, and her
hands sank down benumbed.

"You can do nothing against me," said Death.

"But God can," she said.

"I only do what he wills," said Death. "I am his gardener. I take

H ^rt''

ihli othkr side of the lake stuod a wondereul house, — 11 \v.
heath's large hot-house.

THE STORY OF A MOTHER 469

all his flowers and trees and plant them out in the great Garden of
Paradise in the unknown land ; but how they grow there and what it is
like there, I dare not tell you."

"Give me back my child," said the mother, weeping and beseeching.
Then all at once she seized hold of two Hovvers close to her with both her
hands, and cried to Death :

"I will tear up all your flowers, for I am in despair."

" Do not touch them," said Death. " You say that you are unhappy,
and now you would make another mother just as unhappy."

"Another mother!" said the piior woman, and let go both the
flowers.

" There are your eyes," said Death. " I have flshed them up out of
the lake ; they shone too brightly. I did not know they were yours ; take
them back, — they are now brighter than before, — and then look down into
the well close to you. I will tell you the names of the two flowers which
you were going to tear up, and you will see their whole future, the course
of their whole human life. You will see what you wanted to disturb and
destroy."

And she looked down into the well. It was a pleasure to her to see
how the one became a blessing to the world, and how much happiness and
joy grew up around it. And then she saw the life of the other. It was a
life of sorrow and want, of fear and misery.

"Both are the will of God," said Death.

"Which of them is the flower of misfortune, and which is the blessed
one r" she asked.

"I must not tell you that," said Death; "but this much vou may know
— one of the flowers was that of your own child. It was your child's
fate, your own child's future you saw."

The mother uttered a shriek of terror, and cried: "Which of them
was my child ? Tell me ! oh, tell me ! Save the innocent being. Save
my child from all that misery. Rather take it away. Carry it into the
Kingdom of God. Forget my tears, forget all my prayers and every-
thing I have said and done."

" I do not understand you," said Death. " Will you have back your child,
or shall I take it to the place you know not of ? "

The mother wrung her hands, fell on her knees and prayed to God :
" Hear me not when I pray against thy will, which is always the best.
Flear me not, hear me not! " And she buried her head in her lap, while
Death carried away her child into the unknown land.

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

■^ .

^\}\r^^X)^

i
<

' ■-'"^;

THE KMPliROR WAS SO FOND OF NF.W CLOTHES THAT HE SPEN1
ALL HIS MONEY ON DRESSES.

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

MANY years ago there lived an emperor who was so fond of fine
new clothes that he spent all his money on finery and dresses.
He did not care anything about his soldiers, nor did he care about
going to the play, or driving in the park, except when he wanted to show
ofi-' his new clothes. He had a dress for every hour of the day ; and just
as we should say of a king that he is in the council-room, so they always
used to say the emperor was in his dressing-room.

In the great city where he lived there was always great merriment
going on ; every day a number of strangers arrived there. One day two
vagabonds came to the city ; they called themselves weavers, and said they
knew how to weave the most splendid cloth one could imagine. Not
only were the colors and the patterns something out of the common, but
the clothes which were made from these materials possessed the wonderful
property of becoming invisible to every one that was not fit for his office,
or was hopelessly stupid.

"They must be fine clothes indeed!" thought the emperor; "by
wearing them I could find out which men in my empire are not fit for

473

474 THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

their places. I should be able to know the wise from the stupid. Yes ;
I must have that cloth made for me at once." And he gave the two
vagabonds a lot of money on account, so that they should begin with
their work at once. They put up two looms, and pretended that thev
were working, but they had really nothing at all on the looms. They
kept on ordering the hnest silk and the costliest gold ; this they put in
their own bags, and worked away at the empty looms till late at night.

"I should like to know how much of the cloth they have ready now,"
thought the emperor ; but he felt a little uneasy at the thought that
whoever was stupid or not suited tor his place could not see the cloth.
He thought, of course, that he need not be afraid for his own part ; but
he would send somebody first to see how they were getting on. Every-
body knew about the wonderful property which the cloth possessed, and
all were anxious to find out how bad or stupid their neighbors were.

" I will send my old and honest minister to the weavers," thought the
emperor; "he can best see what the cloth looks like, for he has sense,
and no one knows his business better than he." Well, the old and trusty
minister went into the room where the two vagabonds sat working at the
empty looms. "Dear me!" thought the old minister, and opened his
eyes; "I can't see anything ! " But he did not sav this aloud. The two
vagabonds asked him to be so kind as to come nearer, and inquired if he
did not like the fine pattern and the beautiful colors. They pointed to
the empty looms ; and the poor old minister opened his eyes still more,
but he could not see anything, because there was nothing to see. " Dear,
dear!" he thought, "am I really so stupid? I should never have
thought it. Nobody must know it, however. Am I not fit for my
place? No; it would never do to say I cannot see the cloth." "Well,
you don't say anything about it," said one of the weavers. "Oh, it is
really fine — quite charming," said the old minister, and looked through
his eye-glasses; "what a pattern, and what colors! Yes; I shall tell the
emperor that I am very much pleased with it." "Well, we are pleased to
hear that," said the weavers; and they then called the colors by their
names, and spoke about the wonderful pattern. The old minister listened
to them very attentively, so that he could repeat what they said when he
returned to the emperor; and this he did.

The vagabonds now asked for more money, and silk and gold, which
they said they wanted to complete the work. However, they put "every-
thing in their bags ; not a thread came on the looms, but they kept on
weaving as before at the empty looms. The emperor soon sent another
trusty councilor to see how the weaving was going on, and whether the
cloth would soon be ready. It fared, however, with him as with the
minister; he looked and looked, but there was nothing but the empty
looms. He could see nothing at all.

"Well, is not this a fine piece of cloth ? " said the two vagabonds; and

lit h.MphROR WENT IN IHt Pkl >LKssluN LMlLK 1 H h ^t'l.hNUlU L
'■ BUT HE hasn't GOT ANYTHING ON '. " CRIED A LITTLE CHILD.

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES 47:

they pretended to show him the cloth, and described to him the fine pat-
tern which did not exist at all. "I am not stupid," thought the coun-
cilor; "it is my good office I am not ht tor. It is very provoking,
hut I must not let it out ! " So he praised the cloth, which he did not
see, and expressed his delight at the beautiful colors and the splendid pat-
tern. "Yes, it is very charming," he said to the emperor.

All the people in the town were talking about the splendid cloth. At
last the emperor wished to see it himself while it was still on the loom.
With a whole company of chosen men, amongst whom were the two
honest councilors who had been there before, he proceeded to the two
cunning vagabonds, who were now working away with all their might, but
without any thread or materials whatever.

"Is it not magnificent.?" said the two honest councilors. "Does
vour majesty see what a pattern and what colors?" And then they pointed to
the empty looms, because they believed that the others were sure to see the
cloth. "What can this be?" thought the emperor. "I see nothing. This
is really dreadful. Am I stupid? Am I not fit to be emperor? This is
the most terrible thing that could have happened to me. Oh, yes; it
is very fine," said the emperor; "it has my entire approbation." And he
nodded approvingly, and looked at the empty looms. He would not sav
that he could not see anything. The whole of his suite looked and looked,
but could not see anything. They said, however, just like the emperor,
"It is very fine," and they advised him to wear the new clothes made
from the splendid stufl^ for the first time at the great procession which
was to take place soon. "It is magnificent, splendid, excellent!" was
echoed from mouth to mouth, and everybody seemed to be greatly de-
lighted. The emperor gave each of the vagabonds a cross of a knightly or-
der to wear, and gave them also the title of "Weavers to the Emperor."

The whole night before the day when the procession was to take
place the vagabonds were sitting up working, and had more than sixteen
candles lighted. The people could see they were busy getting the em-
peror's new clothes ready. They pretended to be taking the cloth ofi^ the
looms. They were cutting in the air with large scissors; and were sewing
with needles without any thread, and said at last: "See, there are the
clothes ready."

The Emperor, with his most distinguished courtiers, came himself to
their place, and the vagabonds would lift one arm as if they were holding
something, and said, "See, here are the trousers; here is the coat; here is
the cloak," and so on. "It is as light as a cobweb," they said; "one
would think one had nothing on at all; but that 's just the beauty of it."
"Yes," said all the courtiers; but they could not see anything, because
there was nothing. "Will your imperial majesty please to take ofl-^ your
clothes?" said the vagabonds; "and we will put the new clothes on your
majesty here in front of the large looking-glass."

478

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

The emperor took off his clothes and the vagabonds pretended to
give him piece by piece of the new clothes, which they were supposed to
have ready. They appeared to be fastening something round his waist;
that was the train to the cloak, and the emperor turned round in all di-
rections before the looking-glass. " How well they look ! how splendidly
they fit ! " said all. " What a pattern ! what colors ! That is a costly dress."

"They are waiting outside with the canopy which is to be borne
over your majesty in the procession," said the master of the ceremonies.

"Yes, I am quite ready," said the emperor. "Does it not fit me
well ? " And then he turned round once more before the looking-glass,
to make the people believe that he was really admiring his finery. The
chamberlains who were to carry the train fumbled along the fioor with
their hands, as if they were gathering up the train of the cloak. They
walked as if they were carrying something in their hands, because thev
were afraid that the people should think they could not see anything.

And thus the emperor went in the procession, under the splendid
canopy. And all the people in the streets and in the windows said, "Dear
me! what matchless new clothes the emperor has! What a splendid
train he has to his cloak! How beautifully thev fit him!" Nobody
would admit that he saw nothing, because in that case he had not been
fit for his office, or he must be verv stupid. No other clothes of the
emperor had been such a success.

" Hut he has n't got anything on ! " cried a little child. " Dear me ! just
listen to what the little innocent says," said the father ; and the people
whispered to each other what the child had said. "He has n't got any-
thing on!" shouted all the people at last. This made the emperor's fiesh
creep, because he thought they were right ; but he thought, " I must keep
it up through the procession, anyhow." And he walked on still more
majesticallv, and the chamberlains walked behind and carried the train,
which did not exist at all.

THE SNOW MAN

it's so delightfully cold!" said the snow man.

THE SNOW MAN

1AM creaking all over, it 's so delightfully cold," said the snow man.
"This wind does blow life into one, and no mistake. How that
glowing thing up there is staring at me!" It was the sun he
meant; it was just about setting. "He shall not get me to wink; I can
keep the bits right enough."

He had two large three-cornered bits of tile stuck in his head for eyes,
and for mouth he had a piece of an old rake, which was his teeth.

He came into the world amidst the cheering of the boys, and was
greeted with the tinkling of bells and cracking of whips from the passing
sledges.

The sun went down and the full moon rose round and large, bright
and beautiful, in the blue sky.

"There he is again from another quarter," said the snow man. He
thought it was the sun that showed himself again.

" I have cured him of staring. Now he can hang there and give me
light so that I can see myself. If I only knew how I could manage to
move about! I should like so much to move about. If I could, I should
now be sliding on the ice down yonder, as I have seen the boys doing;
but I don't know how to run."

"(ro! go!" barked the old yard-dog. He was somewhat hoarse; he
had been so ever since he was a house-dog and lav under the stove.
"The sun will soon teach vou to run. I noticed that with your
predecessor last year, and with his predecessors as well. Go! go! They
are all gone."

"I do not understand you, comrade," said the snow man. "Will that
thing up there teach me to run?" (He meant the moon.) "Well, I
noticed he ran just now when I stared hard at him. Now he steals on us
from another quarter."

"You don't know much," said the yard-dog; "but then you have
only just been put together. What you now see is called the moon, and
the one that you saw before was the sun. He will come back again
to-morrow. He will soon teach you to run down into the ditch near the
ramparts. We shall soon have a change in the weather. I can teel it

481

482 THE SNOW MAN

in my left hind leg; there is a shooting pain in it. We shall have a
change."

"I do not understand you," said the snow man; "but I have a
presentiment that it is something unpleasant you mean. He that glowed
and went down, whom vou call sun, is not mv friend, either; my instinct
tells me that."

"Go! go!" harked the yard-dog, and walked round three times, and
then went into his kennel and lay down to sleep.

There really came a change in the weather. In the early morning a
thick clammy fog lay over the whole district. At dawn it began to clear
up; but the wind was icy cold, and a regular frost seemed to have set in.
What a sight it was when the sun rose ! All the trees and bushes were
covered with hoar-frost. They looked like a whole forest of white corals,
as if all the branches were overloaded with sparkling white lowers. The
innumerable delicate little shoots which we do not see in the summer time
on account of the luxuriant foliage were now every one of them visible,
and looked like sparkling white lace-work, and as if a bright luster
streamed out from every branch. The weeping birch waved in the wind.
There was life in it, as in the trees in summer time. It was wonderfully
beautiful in the sunshine.

How everything sparkled ! It seemed as if everything was powdered
with diamond dust, and as if large diamonds were sparkling all over the
snow that covered the ground ; or one might imagine that innumerable
little candles were burning with a light still whiter than the white snow.

" How wonderfully beautiful it is ! " said a young girl, who stepped out
into the garden in company with a young man, and stopped close to the
snow man, where they stood looking at the glittering trees. "There is no
finer sight to be seen in the summer," she said, and her eyes sparkled.

"And such a fellow as this one is not to be seen at all," said the young
man, pointing to the snow man. " He is splendid ! "

The young girl laughed, nodded to the snow man, and then danced
away over the snow with her friend. The snow creaked under their feet,
as if they walked on starch.

"Who were those two.?" asked the snow man of the yard-dog. " Vou
have been longer here than I have. Do you know them r"

"Of course I do," said the yard-dog. "She strokes me, and he gives
me bones. I should not think of biting either of them."

" But what are they ? " asked the snow man.

" Lover-r-rs," said the yard-dog. "They are going to move into the
same kennel and gnaw bones together. Go ! go ! "

"Are those two as important as you or I ? " asked the snow man.

"They belong to the family," said the yard-dog. " One does n't know
much, of course, when one was born only yesterday. I can see that by
you. I am old and experienced. I know everybody in this house, and I

.KF.Il rilK (11,11 VARI>-I>ili;. "THE SUN WILL Sonx TLA
NOTICED THAT WITH YOUR PREDECESSOR LAST YEAR.

THE SNOW MAN 485

remember the time when I did not stand here in the cold, chained up.
Go ! go ! "

"The cold is delighttul," said the snow man. "Go on with your
story; go on! But vou must not rattle so with your chain, tor it makes
me feel shaky."

"(k)! go!" harked the yard-dog. "They tell me I was once a
pretty little puppy. I lay on a velvet cushion, or in the ladies' laps. They
kissed me on the nose, and wiped my paws with embroidered handker-
chiefs. They called me ' Beauty ' and ' Popsy Wopsy,' but then I grew
too big for them, and they gave me to the housekeeper. I had to go to
the basement. You can see right down there from where you are stand-
ing; you can look down into the room where I was the master; for that 's
what I was at the housekeeper's. It was not, of course, such a grand
place as upstairs, but it was much more comfortable down there; I was
not mauled and dragged about by the children as upstairs. I had just as
good food as before, and more of it. I had my own cushion, and then
there was a stove, the finest thing in the world at this time ot the year. I
crept right under it and got out of the way. Ah, that stove — -I still dream
about it! Go ! go ! "

"Does a stove look so beautiful, then ?" asked the snow man. " Is it
at all like me ?"

"No, it is just the reverse of you. It is black as coal, and has a long
neck with a brass drum to it. It eats firewood till the fiames reach right
out of its mouth. Whether you are beside it, close to it, or under it, it
gives no end of comfort. You can see it through the window from where
you arc standing."

And the snow man looked and saw a black polished object with a brass
drum and the light shining out through an opening. The snow man felt
a strange emotion within him ; it was a feeling he could not account for,
but which all people know who are not snow men.

"And why did you leave her?" said the snow man. He felt that the
stove must belong to the female sex. " How could you leave such a place ?"

" I was obliged," said the yard-dog ; "they turned me out of doors and
chained me up here. I had bitten the youngest boy in the leg, because
he kicked away the bone I was gnawing. Bone for bone, thought I ; but
they took it in bad part, and from that time I have been standing here
chained up, and have lost my voice. Just listen — how hoarse I am ! Go !
go ! That was the end of it all."

The snow man did not listen anv longer; he was continually looking
down into the basement, into the housekeeper's room, where the stove
was standing on its four iron legs. It was of the same size as the snow man.

"I feel such a strange crackling within me," he said. "Shall I never
be able to get down there .? It is an innocent wish, and our innocent
wishes ought surely to be fulfilled. It is my highest wish, my only wish,

486 THE SNOW MAN

and it would almost be unjust if it were not granted. I must get there, I
must lean against her, even if I have to break the window."

"You '11 never get there," said the yard-dog; "and if vou did get near
the stove, you would be gone — gone! "

"I am as good as gone," said the snow man. "I am breaking up, I
think."

The snow man stood the whole day looking in through the window.
When the twilight had set in the room looked still more inviting; the stove
threw out such a pleasant light — more pleasant than the moon, or even the
sun, could throw out; such as only a stove can do when there is anything
in it. When the door of the room was opened, the flame would dart out
through the opening, as was its custom; the snow man's white face blushed
crimson, while a red glare shone out from his bosom.

"I cannot stand it!" he said. "How it does suit her to stretch out her
tongue !"

The night was long, but it did not appear so to the snow man ; he stood
buried in his own pleasant thoughts, and they froze till they crackled.

In the morning the window-panes in the basement were frozen over
with the most beautiful ice flowers that any snow man could desire, but
they shut out the stove from his sight. The ice on the panes would not
thaw, and he could not see her. It creaked and it crackled ; it was just
the kind of frosty weather ihat would please a snow man, but he was not
pleased; he could and ought to have felt happv, but he was not happy — he
was stove-sick.

"That 's a dangerous complaint for a snow man," said the yard-dog.
" I have suffered from it myself, but I have got over it. Go ! go ! Now
we are going to have a change of weather."

And the weather changed; a thaw had set in. The thaw increased,
the snow man decreased. He did not say anything, he did not complain,
and that is a certain sign. One morning he fell to pieces. Something
like a broomstick stuck out of the ground where he had stood. It was
the one round which the boys had built him up.

"Now I can understand about his great longing! " said the yard-dog.
"The snow man has had a stove-rake inside him; it was that which
moved in him; now he has got over it. Go ! go ! "

And soon the winter was over too.

"Go ! go ! " barked the yard-dog; but the little girls in the housfc sang:

" Shoot forth, sweet woodruff, so stately and fresh :
Hang out, willow-tree, your long woolen locks;
Come, cuckoo and lark, come hither and sing —
Ere February's close we already have spring ;
I, too, will sing, 'Cuckoo I Ouivit!'
Shine, dear sun, come often and shine I"

And then nobody thought any more about the snow man.

EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER
PLACE"

1HE\ WEKli IHK P(lRTkAll> (IF THK rKDItLKK ANH IHK
WHOM THE WHOLE FAMILY DESCENDED.

-K-GIRL, FROM

EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE"

IT is over a hundred years ago! Behind the forest near the great lake
stood an old country mansion, around which was a deep moat where
rushes and reeds grew in abundance. Near the bridge at the entrance
gate stood an old willow-tree which leaned over the reeds.

From the narrow way under the hill came the sound oi' bugles and
tramping of horses' feet, and therefore the little goose-girl hastened to get
her geese on one side of the bridge before the hunting party came gallop-
ing up. They came at such a pace that she had to jump up quickly on to
one of the big stones near the bridge to avoid being ridden over. She
was scarcely more than a child. She was slightly and delicately built,

489

490 "EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE"

with a beautiful expression and two lovely bright eyes ; but the baron took
no notice of all this. As he galloped past her, he took hold of the top of
his whip, and in rough play gave her a push with the butt-end, so that she
fell backward into the ditch.

"Everything in its proper place," he shouted; "into the mud with
you ! " And then he laughed at what he thought was wit, and the rest
of the company joined in. They shouted and screamed, and the dogs
barked. In fact it was truly, "Rich birds come rushing." But goodness
knows how rich he was. The poor girl, in trying to save herself as she fell,
caught hold of one of the drooping branches of the willow-tree, by which
she was able to keep herself from sinking into the mire, and as soon as the
company and the dogs had disappeared through the gate she tried to drag
herself out; but the branch broke off at the top, and she would have fallen
back among the reeds if a strong hand from above had not seized her at
the same moment. It was that of a peddler, who had seen what had hap-
pened some distance off, and now hastened to help her.

" Everything in its proper place," he said jokinglv, mimicking the
baron, as he pulled her up on to a dry place. The broken branch he put
back against the place where it had been broken off; but " in its proper
place" does not always answer, and so he stuck the branch into the soft
ground. "Grow, if you can, and furnish a good rod for them up at the
mansion yonder; " for he would have liked to see the baron and his com-
panions running the gantlet in earnest. He then walked up to the man-
sion and went in; but he did not go into the grand rooms — he was too
humble for that. He went to the servants' hall, where all the servants
looked at his goods and bargained with him, while from the festive board
upstairs came the sound of shouting and bawling, which was intended for
singing. They were not in a state to produce anything better. Then
followed laughter, accompanied by the howling of dogs. There was
great feasting and carousing going on. Wine and old ale foamed in jugs
and glasses. The dogs were allowed to feast with their masters; and some
of them, after having their snouts wiped with their long ears, were even
kissed by them. The peddler was asked to come up with his wares, but
only to be made game of. The wine had entered their heads, and their
senses had left them. They poured out ale into a stocking for him, so that
he could drink with them; but he must drink quickly. This was consid-
ered very funny, and caused much merriment. Whole herds of. cattle,
farms, and peasants were staked and lost.

"Everything in its proper place," said the peddler when he had got
safely away from the "Sodom and Gomorrah," as he called it. "The
broad highway is my right place. I did not feel quite myself up there."
And the little goose-girl, who looked after the geese, nodded to him from
her place at the stile.

Days passed, and weeks passed, when it was found that the branch that

EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE" 491

had been broken oA tlie willow-tree, and which the peddler had stuck into
the ditch, remained fresh and green, and had even put forth fresh shoots.
The little goose-girl could see that it had taken root, and she rejoiced
greatly, for it was her tree, she thought.

The tree made good progress; but everything else at the mansion was
going to ruin through riotous living and gambling — two wheels on which
it is not easy to run securely.

Six years had scarcely passed when the squire had to wander forth, a
beggar, with bag and stick in hand. The estate was bought by a rich
peddler. It was the very man whom the baron had made game of, and to
whom he had offered ale in a stocking; but honesty and industry are like
favorable winds to a ship, and had helped the peddler, who was now master
of the mansion. From that time card-playing was no longer permitted
any more there. "They are bad reading," the master would say. "They
are the devil's work. When he saw the Bible for the first time he wanted
something to counteract it, and so he invented card-playing."

The new master took a wife, and who do you think she was ?
Why, the little goose-girl, who had always been so well-behaved, so pious
and good. In her new clothes she looked just as grand and beautiful as if
she had been of high birth. How did all this happen ? Well, that 's too
long a story in these busy times ; but it did happen, and the most impor-
tant part of it has yet to be told.

There were now happy and prosperous times at the old mansion. The
mistress managed all the household affairs, and the master the estate.
Blessings seemed to overflow. Where there are riches, riches are sure to
follow. The old mansion was repaired and painted, the moat was cleared
out and fruit-trees were planted in it. Everything looked bright and
cheerful. The floors were as clean as a kitchen dresser. In the large hall
the mistress sat in the winter evenings, with all her maids around her,
spinning woolen and linen yarn; and every Sunday evening the justice of
the peace, for the peddler had been made one, — u dignity which had been
conferred upon him only in his old age, — would read aloud from the
Bible. The children grew up — for children had come — and were well
educated; but they were not all equally gifted, which may be the case in
every family.

But the willow branch outside had grown to be quite a fine tree,
rearing its head aloft, free and undisturbed. "That is our genealogical
tree," the old people said; "and that tree must he held in honor and
respect." This they told to all their children, even to those who were not
gifted with clever heads.

A hundred years had now rolled by. It was in our time. The lake
had grown into a marsh, and the old mansion had almost disappeared. A
long, narrow pool of water, with the remains of stone walls along the
edges, was all that remained of the deep moat, and here still stood a fine

492 "EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE"

old tree with its drooping branches. It was the "genealogical tree"
which stood there, an example of how beautiful a willow-tree may become
if left to itself. The trunk had certainly a big crack in it, right from the
root to the crown, and the storm had given it a little twist ; but it
remained firm in its place, and in all the cracks and crevices into which
the wind had blown earth grew grasses and flowers, especially near the
top where the farge branches shot out in all directions. There was a kind
of miniature hanging garden, with raspberry bushes and chickweed, and
even a little mountain ash had taken root there, and stood erect and
elegant among the branches of the old willow-tree, which reflected itself
in the dark water when the wind had driven all the duckweed into a
corner of the pond. Close by a narrow path led across the fields to
the manor.

High on the hill and close to the forest stood the new mansion. It
was a large and magnificent building, with a beautiful outlook from the
windows, the glass of which was so clear and transparent that one could
hardly believe there were any panes in them at all. The large flight of
steps in front of the door looked like a bower of roses and large-leaved
plants. The lawn was as fresh and green as if every blade of grass had
been tended morning and evening. In the drawing-room hung costly
pictures; and there were chairs and sofas covered with silk and velvet
which seemed to run on their own legs, tables with bright marble tops,
and books in morocco bindings with gilt edges. Yes; they must really be
wealthy people who lived here. They were people of position. Here
lived the baron and his family.

Everything in the house was in harmonv. The motto of the tamily
was still, "Everything in its proper place." Therefore all the pictures
which at one time were the honor and glory of the old house had now
been hung in the passage leading to the servants' hall. They looked like
old lumber, especially the two old portraits — the one of a man in a rose-
colored coat and a wig, the other of a lady with powdered, high-dressed
hair and a red rose in her hand, while both were surrounded with a
wreath of willow leaves. There were a good many round holes in the
two pictures, because the young barons were in the habit of using the two
old folks as a target when shooting with their cross-bows. They were the
portraits of the justice of the peace and his wife, from whom the whole
family descended.

"But they did not properly belong to our family," said one of the
young barons. "He was a peddler and she a goose-girl. They were
not like papa and mama."

The pictures were only old lumber, and as the motto was, " Everything
in its proper place," the great-grandfather and great-grandmother were
sent to the passage leading to the servants' hall.

The son of the clergyman was tutor to the family. He was out

"EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE" 493

walking one day with the young barons and their eldest sister, who had
just been confirmed, when they followed the path that led down to the
old willow-tree. As they walked on she gathered a bouquet of wild
flowers of the field, "each in its proper place," so that the bouquet became
altogether a thing of beauty.

At the same time she listened attentively to everything the clergyman's
son said. She was pleased to hear him talk about the elements of nature
and the great men and women in history. She was of a good and healthy
disposition, and possessed great nobility of mind, and a heart which fully
appreciated all that God had created.

They came to a halt down by the old willow-tree. The youngest
of the barons wanted to have a flute cut for him, such as he had often had
made from other willow-trees, and the clergyman's son therefore broke
ofl^a branch.

"Oh, don't do that," said the young baroness, but she spoke too late.
"It is our famous old tree. I love it very much. And therefore they
laugh at me at home, but I don't mind. There is an old tale attached to
this tree."

And then she told him everything that we already know about the
tree, about the old mansion, about the goose-girl and the peddler who first
met here and became the ancestors of the grand family and the young
baroness.

"They would not let themselves be ennobled, the good old folks ! " she
said. "They always used to say, 'Everything in its proper place,' and
they did not think they would be in their proper place if they let themselves
be exalted through money. It was their son, my grandfather, who was
made a baron. He was a very learned man, and was much respected and
appreciated by princes and princesses, and was present at all their festivals.
The others at home think most of him ; but to me — I don't know why —
there is something about the old couple which draws my heart to them.
It must have been so pleasant, so patriarchal in the old mansion, where the
mistress of the house sat at the spinning-wheel with all her maids around
her, and the venerable master read aloud from the Bible."

"They must have been excellent people — sensible people," said the
clergyman's son ; and then they began talking about nobility and com-
moners, and one would scarcely have thought he belonged to the latter by
the way he spoke about the nobility.

" It is a good thing to belong to a family which has distinguished
itself; to possess, so to speak, in one's blood the incentive to lead the
way in what is great and noble. It is pleasant to bear the name of a-
family which is like a card of admission to the best circles. Nobility
represents what is pure and lofty, and is a golden coin which has received
the stamp that indicates its value. It is one of the mistakes of our day,
into which many of our poets have naturally fallen, to proclaim that

494 "EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE"

everything connected with nobility must be bad and stupid, and that
among the poor, the lower you go, the more sterling qualities do you
find. But that is not my opinion, for it is altogether wrong — quite wrong.
In the higher classes you will find many beautiful and striking traits
of character. My mother told me of one, and I could tell you of
many more.

"She was on a visit to a grand house in town. I think niv grandmother
had nursed the lady of the house. My mother was in the room with the
fine old baron when he noticed an old woman on crutches down in the
courtyard. She used to come every Sunday to get a penny. 'There
comes the poor old woman,' said the baron. 'She has great difficulty in
getting about;' and before my mother could understand his intentions he
was out of the door and down the stairs; he, the old excellency of seventy
years, went down himself to the poor woman to save her the trouble of
going up the troublesome stairs for the trifling assistance she came for.
This is, of course, only a trivial incident, but, like the 'widow's mite,' it
came from the bottom of the heart, — a voice from the very depths of
humanity, — and that 's the moral the poet ought to point. Just in our
times this is what he ought to sing about. It does good, it soothes and
reconciles mankind. But when a person, because he is of good birth and
has a pedigree, like the Arabian horses, prances on his hind legs and
neighs in the streets, and says, on coming into his room after a commoner
has been there, * People from the street have been in here ! ' that shows
nobility in its decay, for then it has become a mere mask of the kind
which Thespis made for himself. Such a person people onlv laugh at and
hand him over to satire."

This was the tutor's divScourse. It was somewhat long, but in the
meantime the flute had been cut.

There was a great party at the mansion. Many guests from the
neighborhood and the capital were present. Some of the ladies were
tastefully dressed, while others showed no taste at all. The great hall was
quite full of people. The clergy of the district stood respectfully grouped
together in a corner. They gave one the impression that there was going
to be a funeral. All were, however, intent upon enjoying themselves. But
the entertainment had not yet commenced.

A concert formed part of the program, and among the performers was
the young baron, who had brought his willow flute with him," but he
could not produce a note upon it, nor could his father ; it was evidently
quite useless.

There was music and there was song, but of the kind which the
performers themselves enjoy most. Otherwise everything passed ofl^ nicely.

"You also play, I believe?" said a cavalier, whose only recommenda-
tion was that he was the son of his parents, addressing himself to the
tutor. "You play the flute and make it yourself, I hear. It is genius

\- ::/

t""!!*!,..

IT WAS A WONDERFUL FLUTE! II WAS liKAKli Al.l ■ .\ l.K IHh .«! A.N >l. .-\ . i:
IN THE FOREST, AND FOR MANY MILES INTO THE COUNTRY.

"EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE" 497

which rules the world — which sits on the right side. Heaven knows I
try to Follow the times. You have to do that, you know. You will
delight us all with your little instrument, I 'm sure," he said, handing him the
little flute which had been cut from the willow-tree down by the pool.
Then he loudly announced that the tutor would oblige with a solo on
the flute.

They evidently only wanted to make fun of him ; so the tutor did not
feel inclined to play, althtnigh he could perform very well on it. But
they pressed him and urged him, and at last he tot)k the flute and put it
to his lips.

It was a wonderful flute. A tone was heard — a tone as sustained as
that which one hears from a locomotive — yes, and even stronger. It was
heard all over the mansion, in the garden, and in the forest for many
miles into the country. And with the sound came a storm which roared,
"Everything in its proper place!" And then the baron flew, just as if he
was carried by the wind, right out of the mansion and straight into
the herdsman's cottage ; and the herdsman flew up — not into the drawing-
room: he could not get there — but up into the servants' hall, among the
grand footmen who were strutting about in silk stockings. And these
proud fellows were almost paralyzed with horror on seeing such a common
fellow daring to sit down at table among them.

But in the dining-hall the young baroness flew to the upper end of
the table, where she worthily filled the seat of honor ; and the clergyman's
son got a seat next to her, and there the two sat as if they were a newly
married couple. An old count, one of the oldest families in the country,
remained undisturbed in his seat of honor, for the flute was fair and just,
as every one ought to be.

The witty cavalier, who was the cause of the flute having been
played — he whose only recommendation was that he was the son o( his
parents — flew head over heels right among the poultry ; but he was not
the only one.

The flute was heard for a whole mile into the country, and many
strange things happened. A rich merchant and his family, who were
driving in a coach and four, were blown right out of the coach, and could
not even find a place behind it. Two rich farmers who had grown too
big to look after their fields were blown into the ditch. It was a
dangerous flute. Fortunately, it burst at the first note, and that was a good
thing. It was put back in the player's pocket again, and "Everything
was in its proper place."

The day after no one spoke of what had happened, and that is how
we get the saying, "to pocket the flute." Besides, everything was in its
usual place again, with the exception of the two old pictures of the peddler
and the goose-girl, which were now hanging in the drawing-room. They
had been blown on to the walls there, and when one of the well-known

498

EVERYTHING IN ITS PROPER PLACE"

connoisseurs said they were the works of a master, they were allowed to
remain and were restored. They did not know before that they were
worth anything, for how should they know r

Now they hung in a place of honor. " Everything in its proper
place!" And that was now realized. Eternity is long — much longer
than this story.

THE HAPPY FAMILY

THE SNAILS LIVE ON BURDOCK LEAVES, AND THAT IS WHY BURDOCKS
WERE PLANTED.

THE HAPPY FAMILY

THE biggest green leaf in our country is certainly the burdock leaf.
If you hang one in front of you, it is almost large enough for an
apron, and if you put it on vour head, it would be just as useful in
rainy weather as an umbrella, for it is so very big. A burdock never
grows alone. No ; where one grows there are many more. It is a lovely
sight, and all this loveliness is, after all, only food for snails. In olden
times grand folks made a fricassee of large white snails, which they thought
tasted so delicious that thev used to exclaim, "What a tasty morsel!"
These snails lived on burdock leaves, and that is why burdocks came to
be planted.

Now at the time of our story there was an old mansion where there
lived people who did not eat snails any longer. The snails had quite died
out, but the burdocks had not. Thev grew all over the walks and the
beds in the garden till their growth could no longer be checked. It was
a regular forest of burdocks. Here and there stood an apple-tree or a pear-
tree; otherwise no one would have thought it was a garden. There were
burdocks everywhere, and in among them lived two very old snails, the
last survivors of the family.

They did not themselves know how old they were ; but they could
well remember that there had been many more of them, that they
belonged to a family from foreign lands, and that the whole forest had
been planted for them and theirs. They had never been outside the place,
but they knew that there still existed something in the world which was
called the mansion, and that up there one of them was boiled and
became black, and was then placed on a silver dish ; but what happened
afterward they did not know. What it was like to be boiled and placed
on a silver dish they could not very well imagine, but it was said to be
very delightful and very grand. Neither the cockchafer, the toad, nor
the earthworm, of whom they had made inquiries, could give any
information. None of them had been boiled or placed on silver dishes.

The old white snails were the grandest beings in the world. This
they knew. The forest had been planted for their sake, and the mansion
existed so that they might be boiled and placed on a silver dish.

Thev lived very lonely and happily; and as they had no children ot

501

502

THE HAPPY FAMILY

their own, they had adopted a small, common snail, whom they brought
up as their own child. But the little one would not grow, for he was only
a common snail ; but the old people, especially Mother Snail, thought she
could see that he grew, and she asked Father Snail, in case he could not
see it, if he would just feel the little snail's shell, which he did, and then
he found that she was right.
One day it rained hard.

\.M GLAD WE HAVE OUR OWN HOUSE, ' SAID MOTHER SNAIL, "AND THE LITTLE ONE
HAS ALSO HIS."

"Just hsten to the pitter-patter on the burdocks," said Father Snail.

"And the drops are coming down," said IVIother Snail. "They are
running down along the stalk. You '11 see, we shall have the place wet.
I am glad we have our own house, and the little one ha« also his. More
has certainly been done for us than for all other creatures. One can see
that we are the most important in the world. We have houses from our
birth, and the burdocks are planted for our sake. I should like to know
how far they extend and what there is beyond them."

"There is nothing beyond," said Father Snail. "It could not be
better anywhere than here with us, and I have nothing to wish for."

"Well, yes," said Mother Snail. "I should like to go to the mansion,
and be boiled and placed on a silver dish, just like all our ancestors. It is
a great honor, you may be sure."

THE HAPPY FAMILY 503

"The mansion is very likely in ruins," said Father Snail, "or it may
be overgrown by burdocks, so that the people cannot get out. Besides,
you need not be so impatient. You are always in such a hurry, and the
little one is beginning to be just the same. Has he not for the last three
days been trying to creep up that stalk ? It makes me giddy when I look
up at him."

"You must not scold us," said Mother Snail. "He is very careful how
he creeps. He is sure to be a comfort to us, and we old people have
nothing else to live for. But have you been thinking where we shall
find a wife for him ? Don't you think that far away in the burdock
forest there may be some of our kin ?"

"I think there are sure to be some black snails," said the old snail —
" black snails without houses. But they are a very common lot, and very
conceited besides. But we could commission the ants to do it. They are
always running backward and forward, as if they had something to do,
and they are sure to know of a wife for our little one."

"We know of a most lovely one for him," said the ants; "but we
are afraid it would be of no use, for she is a queen."

"That does not matter," said the old ones. "Has she a house?"

"She has a palace," said the ants; "the most beautiful ant's palace,
with seven hundred passages."

"Thanks," said Mother Snail. "Our son is not going into an ant-hill.
If you know of nothing better, we shall commission the white gnats to
find him a wife. They Hy far and wide, in rain and sunshine, and they
know the whole of the burdock forest."

"We have got a wife for him," said the gnats. "A hundred men's
paces from here, on a gooseberry bush sits a little snail with a house. She
is quite lonely, and old enough to be married. It is only a hundred
men's paces from here."

"Well, let her come to him," said the old ones. "He has a whole
forest of burdocks; she has only a hush." And so they fetched the little
lady-snail. It took her eight days to get there; but thaf was just as it
should be. One could then see she was one of the right sort. And then
they had the wedding. Six glow-worms provided all the light they could.
Otherwise it was a very quiet affair, for the old snail couple could not
stand any carousing and merrymaking; but Mother Snail made a lovely
speech, as Father Snail was too overcome to say anything. And so they
gave the young couple the whole burdock forest as an inheritance, and
said what they had always maintained : that it was the finest place in the
world, and if they lived honestly and respectably, and multiplied them-
selves, they and their children might some day be taken to the mansion,
and be boiled till they were black and placed on a silver dish.

After the speech had been made, the old couple crept into their house
and never came out again. They slept the long sleep. The young snail

504

THE HAPPY FAMILY

couple now ruled in the forest, and had a large progeny; but they were
never boiled, and were never placed on a silver dish. They therefore
came to the conclusion that the mansion was in ruins, and that all the
people in the world were dead; and, as nobody contradicted them, it must
be true. And the rain fell in heavy drops on the leaves of the burdocks,
in order to provide drum-music for their sake; and the sun shone, in order
to give the burdock forest color for their sake ; and they were very happv,
and the whole tamily was happy, for that they really were.

THE SHADOW

THE SHADOW OF THE STRANGER FELL IPOX THE WALL OF THE HOUSE OPPOSITJi.

THE SHADOW

IN hot countries the sun can be very scorching indeed. The people
there are as brown as mahogany, and in the very hottest countries
they are black negroes. But the learned man from the cold regions,
about whom you are now going to hear, had got only as far as the hot
countries, where he thought he could roam about just as he did at home;
but he soon found out his mistake. He and all sensible people had to
keep indoors; shutters and doors were closed the whole day; one would
have thought the whole house was asleep, or that there was nobody at home.
The narrow street with the high houses, in which he lived, was so situated
that the sun shone upon it from morning to night, till it became quite
unbearable. The learned man from the cold regions, who was young and
intelligent, felt as if he sat in a glowing oven. It soon began to tell upon
him; he became quite thin. Even his shadow began to shrink, and grew
much smaller than it had been at home ; the sun seemed even to affect the
shadow. They both seemed to revive in the evening, when the sun had
gone down.

It was really a pleasure to see how the shadow, as soon as the light
was brought into the room, stretched itself all the way up the wall and
even along the ceiling, so long did it become ; it had to stretch itself to
gain strength. The learned man would sometimes go out on the balcony
to stretch himself there, and as the stars began to appear in the bright,
clear sky he felt life returning to him again. All the balconies — and in
the hot countries every window has a balcony — were now tilled with
people, for air you must have, even if you have become accustomed to a
heat that turns you as brown as mahogany. The streets in all directions
became lively. Shoemakers and tailors — in fact everybody — moved out into
the streets; tables and chairs were brought out, and candles — thousands of
candles — ^were lighted; some would talk, others would sing, while the
people walked up and down, and the carriages rolled past, and the donkeys
with their tinkling bells pushed their way through the crowd. There
were funerals with singing of hymns, the church bells rang, and the boys
let off" fireworks. Yes, there were indeed lively scenes in the streets.

Only in one house — in the one opposite to where the learned man lived
— everything was quiet. Yet some one must be living there, for there were

507

508 THE SHADOW

flowers on the balcony, which blossomed so beautifully in the sunshine,
and this they could not have done unless they were watered ; and as
somebody would have to do this, there must be people in the house.
Toward evening the door was opened; but the rooms were in darkness,
especially the front room, while from the rooms farther in came the sound
of music. The learned man from foreign lands thought the music was
beautiful, but it may be it was only his imagination, for he thought that
everything in the hot countries was beautiful; he only wished there had
been no sun. His landlord said he did not know who had taken the
house opposite; no people were to be seen there, and as for the music, he
thought it was dreadfully monotonous. "It's just as if some one sat prac-
tising a piece which he could not master, and always the same piece. I
suppose he thinks he will be able to master it at last; but he will never
manage it, however long he may practise."

One night the stranger awoke; he was sleeping with the door leading
to the balcony open, and the curtain before it was blown aside by the
wind. He thought he saw a strange glare from the balcony of the house;
all the flowers shone with the most lovely colors, and in the middle of
them stood a beautiful, graceful maiden. It seemed as if a bright light
also proceeded from her, which completely dazzled his eyes. But then
he had opened them very wide indeed, and had only just awoke from his
sleep. With one bound he was out of bed; he approached the window
quietly, and peeped through the curtains; but the maiden was gone and
the glare had disappeared; the flowers did not shine, but stood there as
lovely as ever. The door was ajar, and from the inner rooms came the
sounds of such soft and lovely music that one could not help falHng into a
sweet reverie; it all seemed like magic. Who lived there? Where was
the real entrance ? The whole of the ground floor was occupied by shops,
and the people could not always be passing in and out through them.

One evening the stranger was sitting on his balcony ; in the room
behind him a light was burning, and so it was only natural that his shadow
should fall upon the wall of the house opposite. Why ! There it was
sitting opposite to him among the flowers on the balcony, and whenever
he moved the shadow also moved, which of course was only natural.

"I think my shadow is the only living thing one can see over yonder,"
said the learned man. "Look how comfortably it sits there among the
flowers; the door is half open, the shadow might kindly go inside and
look round the rooms, and then come and tell me what it had seen.
Yes, you would be making yourself useful then," he said in fun. "Just
step inside. Well, won't you?" he added, and nodded to the shadow,
and the shadow nodded back to him. "Well, go then, but don't be long,"
he said, rising from his seat; and at the same time the shadow on the
balcony opposite also rose. And when the stranger turned round to go
in, the shadow also turned round; in fact, any close observer could plainly

THE SHADOW 509

see that the shadow walked in through the half-open balcony door of the
house opposite just as the stranger went into his room and drew down
the long blinds.

Next morning the learned man went out to take his coffee and read
the papers. "What is this?" he said, as he got out into the sunshine.
"I don't appear to have any shadow. It must have left me last night and
not come back. It 's rather tiresome ! "

It annoyed him, not so much because the shadow was gone, but
because he knew that there was another story about a man without a
shadow which everybody at home in the cold countries had heard of; and
it the learned man now went back and told his story, they would say he
was only palming off other people's stories as his own, and he did not care
for that sort of thing. So he made up his mind not to say anything at all
about it, which was only right and sensible.

In the evening he went out upon his balcony again ; he had placed
the light behind him, for he knew that a shadow always wants his master
as a screen, but he could not lure it forth; he made himself little, he made
himselt big, but there was no shadow — no shadow appeared. He said
"H'm ! h'm ! " but it was all of no use.

It was very annoying, but in hot countries everything grows so quicklv,
and after a week had passed by he noticed, to his great jov, that a new
shadow was beginning to grow out of his legs when he came out into the
sunlight, so that the root of it must have remained, after all. In three
weeks he had quite a respectable shadow, which, when he set out home-
ward to the northern countries, grew more and more during the journey,
till at last it became so long and big that half of it would have been
sufficient.

The learned man returned home and began to write hooks about what
is true in this world, and about what is good and what is beautiful ; and
days passed, and years passed — many, many years passed.

One evening, as he sat in his room, there came a gentle knock at
the door.

"Come in!" he said; but no one came in. He then opened the door,
and there stood before him such an exceedingly thin person that he felt
quite uncomfortable. The stranger was, however, verv elegantly dressed,
so he thought he must be some great personage.

"To whom have I the honor of speaking.?" asked the learned man.

"Ah! I thought as much," said the elegant person. "I thought
you would not recognize me, I have gained so much body. I have ac-
tually gained flesh and clothes. You never thought you would see me so
well off. Don't you know your old shadow? You never expected me to
come back any more. I have got on remarkably well since last I was
with you. I am well to do in every respect. If I want to buy myself
free from service I can do it." And then he rattled a large bundle of
28

510 THE SHADOW

valuable seals which were attached to his watch, and tugged at the mas-
sive gold chain he wore round his neck. How the diamond rings glit-
tered on his lingers! And they were genuine.

"No, I cannot quite get over my surprise," said the learned nian ;
"but what does it all mean?"

"Well, nothing of the ordinary kind," said the shadow; "but you
yourself do not belong to ordinary folks, and I, as you know, have trodden
in your footsteps since you were a child. As soon as you found I was old
enough to go out alone in the world, I went my own way. I am now in
the most brilliant circumstances; but a kind of longing came over me to
see you once more before you die — for you must die, of course. I also
wanted to see these parts again ; for, after all, one does love one's native
country. I know you have got another shadow in my place; have I got
to pay him or you anything? If so, be good enough to let me know."

"No! Is it really thou?" said the learned man. "It is most remarka-
ble. I should never have believed that one's old shadow could return
again in the shape of a human being."

"But do tell me what I have got to pay you," said the shadow; "for
I should not like to be in debt to any one."

"How canst thou talk like that?" said the learned man. "What
debt can there possibly be to talk about? Be as free as any living being.
I am exceedingly glad to hear of thy good fortune. Sit down, old friend,
and tell me how it all happened, and what thou didst see in the house op-
posite where I lived in the hot countries."

"Yes, I don't mind telling you," said the shadow, and sat down; "but
then you must promise me you will never tell any one in the town here,
no matter where you may meet me, that I have been your shadow. I
am thinking of getting engaged, for I have more than enough to support
a family."

"Thou canst be quite easy on that point," said the learned man. "I
will not tell anybody who thou really art. Here is my hand upon it.
I promise it, and a man is as good as his word."

"And a shadow as good as his," said the shadow; tor this was ot
course the right way for him to put it.

It was really very remarkable how much his appearance had become
that of a man ; he was dressed in black clothes of the very finest quality,
and wore patent-leather boots and a hat which could be shut up so that
you could see only the crown and the brim. Then there were the seals,
the gold chain, and the diamond rings, which we already have mentioned.
The shadow was in fact extremely well dressed, and it was just this which
made him look so much like a human being.

"I '11 now begin my story," said the shadow, putting his feet with the
patent-leather boots as firmly as he could upon the sleeve of the learned
man's new shadow, which lay like a poodle at his feet. This was either

I'HK DOOR, AND TIIKl
IX I'F.RSON THAT UK

STOOD liEFORE IIIM SUCH
•;i.T OUITK UNCOMFORTAr.LE.

THE SHADOW 513

out of pride or to make the new shadow stick to his master, but it lay still
and quiet in order to hear the better; it wanted to know how one could
manage to become free and get on so well as to be one's own master.

"Do you know who lived in the house opposite to you?" asked the
shadow. "Why, Poesy, the loveliest being in the world, lived there! I
remained there three weeks, and it did me just as much good as if I had
lived there a thousand years and read everything that was written in verse
and prose; for, although I say it, it is the plain truth: I have seen every-
thing, and I know everything!"

"Poesy!" cried the learned man. "Yes, yes! She often lives like
a hermit in the great cities. Poesy ! Yes, I saw her for one short
moment, but my eyes were heavy with sleep. She stood on the balcony,
radiant as the Northern lights. But tell me, do tell me ! Thou wert on
the balcony; thou didst enter through the door, and then "

"Then I came into the anteroom," said the shadow. "You always
used to sit and look across into it. There was no light there — only a kind
of twilight; but one door after another stood open through a long suite
of rooms and halls which were brilliantly lighted, and I should have
been killed outright by the blaze of light if I had gone straight in to
her ladyship; but I was prudent and took my time, and that is what one
ought to do."

"And what didst thou seer" asked the learned man.

"I saw everything, and I will tell you all about it; but — and do not
think it is pride on my part — as a free man, and with the knowledge I
possess, not to speak of my good position and mv affluent circumstances,
I would rather you did not call me 'thou.'"'

"I beg your pardon," said the learned man. "It is an old habit which
clings to me. You are quite right, and I shall remember. But now you
must tell me everything you saw."

"Everything," said the shadow; "for I saw everything, and I know
everything ! "

"What was the innermost room like .? " asked the learned man. " Was
it like the cool forest? Was it like a sacred church? Were the rooms
like the starlit sky when you stand on a high mountain?"

"Everything was there," said the shadow. "I did not go quite in; I
remained in the anteroom in the twilight, but I had a very good place
there. I saw everything, and I know everything ! I have been to the
Court of Poesy in the anteroom."

" But what did you see? Did all the gods of the ancients pass through
the large halls ? Did the heroes of old fight out their differences there ?
Did the sweet little children play about and tell their dreams?"

" I was there, as I have told you ; and you will then understand that I

1 In Denmark, as in many other Continental countries, only relations and intimate friends
call each other "thou."

514 THE SHADOW

saw everything there was to be seen. If you had gone there you would
not have become a human being; but I did. And at the same time I
learned to know my innermost nature — what was born in me: my
kinship to Poesy. During the time I was with you I did not think much
about these things; but at sunrise and at sunset I always grew so wonder-
fully large, as you know, and in the moonlight I was almost more
distinctly visible than yourself I did not at that time understand my
nature, but there, in the anteroom, it was revealed to me. I became a
human being. When I went out, I had become mature; but you were
no longer in the hot countries. I felt ashamed, as a human being, to go
about in the state I was in. I wanted boots, I wanted clothes, and all the
human varnish that makes the man. I betook myself to — well, I '11 tell
you in all confidence, for you won't put it into any book — I betook
myself to the sweet-stuff" woman's petticoat, and under it I concealed
myself. The woman little knew what she was concealing. I went out
only in the evenings. I ran about the streets in the moonlight, I stretched
myself up along the wall, — this tickles one's back so delightfully, — I ran
up and down, and looked in through all the windows — through those
highest up and on the drawing-room floor and in the roof. I looked in
where no one else could look, and I saw what nobody ought to see.
After all, the world is a wicked place. I would not be a human being if
it were not an accepted fact that there is something in being one. I saw
the most incredible things among the wives, among the husbands, among
the parents, and among the darling little children. I saw," continued the
shadow, "what nobody must know, but what all would so much like
to know — about the evil doings of their neighbors. If I had written
about it in a newspaper, how it would have been read ! But I wrote
direct to the persons themselves, and all the towns I came to became
panic-stricken. The people were greatly afraid of me, and yet they were
so exceedingly fond of me. The professors made me a professor ; the
tailors gave me new clothes, with which I am well supplied; the master
of the mint coined money for me, and the women said I was very
handsome. And tlien 1 became the man 1 am; and now I will say
good-by. Here is my card. I live on the sunny side of the street, and
I am always at home in rainy weather." And so the shadow took
his leave.

"That was most remarkable," said the learned man.

Years and days passed bv, and then the shadow called again.

"How are you getting on ?" he asked.

"Alas!" said the learned man, "I am busy writing about what is
true, about what is good, and what is beautiful, but nobody cares to hear
anything about it. I am quite in despair, for I take it so much to heart."

"But I do not," said the shadow. "I am getting fat, and that is
what one should try to become. You don't understand the world. You

THE SHADOW 515

are making yourself ill over it. You must travel. I am going to take
a trip this summer. Will you come with me ? I should like to have a
traveling companion. Will you come with me as mv shadow ? It would
be a great pleasure to have vou with me. I will pay all the expenses."

"This is rather too much," said the learned man.

"That is as vou take it," said the shadow. "It will do you a great
deal ot good to travel. It you will he mv shadow, you shall have every-
thing free on the journey."

"This is really too much," said the learned man.

"But such is the way of the world," said the shadow; "and so it
always will be." And so he left.

The learned man did not fare well at all. Sorrow and care pursued
him, and what he said about the true, and the good, and the beautiful
was no more valued by the majority of the people than a rose would be
by a cow. And at last he fell ill.

"You look exactly like a shadow," people would say to him; and the
learned man shuddered at the very thought of it.

" \'ou must go to a watering-place," said the shadow, who had come to
visit him; "there is no help for it. I will take you with me for old
acquaintance' sake. I will pay the expenses, and you can write a
description ot it and amuse me a little on the journey. I must go to
a watering-place. My beard does not grow as it should do. That is also
an ailment, for one must have a beard. Be sensible now, and accept my
offer. We shall travel like comrades, you know."

And so they set out on their journey. The shadow was now master,
and the master was the shadow. They drove out together, they rode and
walked together side by side or in front or behind one another, just as the
sun stood in the sky. The shadow always knew how to look as the
master, which the learned man did not seem to notice, for he was very
good-natured, and of an exceedingly kind and gentle disposition. So he said
one day to the shadow: "Since we have now become traveling com-
panions, and have grown up together from our childhood, should we not
drink to good-fellowship, and call each other 'thou'? It is far more
sociable."

"There is something in that," said the shadow, who was now really
the master. " It is very straightforward and well-meant of you to say so,
and I will be just as well-meant and straightforward with you. You are
a learned man, and you know all the vagaries of human nature. Some
people cannot bear to touch brown paper because it makes them ill ; others
suffer terrible agonies if you scratch a nail against a pane of glass. I ex-
perience just the same sort of feeling on hearing you call me ' thou.' I
feel as if I were crushed to the earth — very much the same as what I felt
in my former relation to you. You see, it is a question of feeling, not of
pride. I cannot verv well let you sav 'thou' to me, but I am quite
28*

516 THE SHADOW

willing to say 'thou' to you; and so I have met you half-wav." And so
the shadow addressed his former master as "thou."

"That is rather too bad," he thought, "that I must say 'you,' and he
may call me 'thou.'" But he had now to put up with it.

So they arrived at a watering-place where there were many strangers,
and among these there was a beautiful princess who was troubled with
the complaint of being able to see too well, which makes one feel
rather uneasy.

She discovered at once that the new arrival was quite a different
personage from all the others. " He has come here to grow his beard,
they say, but I can see the real reason — he is not able to cast a shadow."

She had now become quite curious about him, and so the next time
she met him when taking her walk she entered at once into conversation
with the stranger. As she was a princess, she was not obliged to stand on
ceremony, but said straight out to him : " Your complaint is that you are
not able to cast anv shadow."

"Your royal highness must be on the highroad to recovery," said the
shadow. "I know your complaint is that you see everything too well,
but it has disappeared. You are cured. Now it happens that I have
a shadow of quite an unusual kind. Have you not seen the person who
always accompanies me.? Other people have the usual kind of shadow,
but I like something out of the common. We give our servants liner
cloth for their liveries than we wear ourselves, and so I let my shadow
dress up like a human being. You see, I have even given him a shadow.
It is rather expensive, but I like to have something all to myself"

"What can he mean.?" thought the princess. "Am I really cured?
This watering-place is the best in the world. Water, in our times, does
wonders. But I shall not leave here, for it is now beginning to get
interesting, and I like this stranger exceedingly, if only his beard does
not grow, for then he will go away."

In the evening the princess danced with the shadow in the great
ball-room. She was light, but he was still lighter. Such a dancer she
had never danced with before. She told him from what country she
came; he knew it, and had been there himself, but she was not then at
home. He had looked through the windows, — both the upper and lower
ones, — and he had seen one thing and another, so he was able to answer
the princess, and make such allusions that she was quite astonished'. He
must be the wisest man in the whole world, she thought, and she had the
greatest respect for all his knowledge.

And then she danced with him again, and fell in love with him, which the
shadow could very well see, for she was looking right through him. They
then danced once more, and she was on the point of telling him of her
love ; but she was a prudent woman, and thought of her country and her
kingdom, and of the many people she would one day rule over. " He is

a) Id HE\R THF ILOILL illUL 1 HLkKVH U\CL MOKL.

THE SHADOW 519

a wise man," she said to herself, "and that is a good thing ; and he dances
beautifully, and that is also a good thing. But has he any profound
knowledge? That is just as important. I shall have to examine him."
And by and by she began, and asked him the most difficult questions — so
difficult that she could not answer them herself, and the shadow made
quite a wry face.

"You cannot give an answer to that," said the princess.

"Oh, I learned all that when I was a child," said the shadow.
"I think that even my shadow over yonder by the door could
answer them."

" Your shadow ! " said the princess. " That would be most remarkable."

"Well, I will not say for certain," said the shadow, "but I should
think so, since he has now followed me about for so many years and heard
me speak so much — I should think so. But your royal highness must
allow me to inform you that he is so proud of being taken for a human
being that in order to put him into a good humor — and he must be that
if he is to answer well — he must be treated just as it he were a hu-
man being."

"I must say I like that," said the princess.

And so she went over to the learned man near the door and spoke to him
about the sun and the moon, and about men and women, about their out-
ward and inward being; and he answered wisely and sensibly.

"What a man he must be who has such a wise shadow! " she thought.
" It would be a real blessing to my people and my country if I chose him
for my husband — and I shall do so."

And they soon came to an understanding, but no one was to know of
it till she was back in her own kingdom.

"No one shall know — not even my shadow." And he had, no
doubt, his own reasons for saying this.

And so they came to the country where the princess ruled.

"Just listen, my good friend," said the shadow to the learned man.
" I am now as happy and as powerful as any one can be. I should now
like to do something handsome for you. You shall always live with me
at the palace, drive about wath me in my royal carriage, and receive
a hundred thousand dollars a year; but then you must let yourself be called
shadow by one and all. You must not tell anybody you have ever been a
human being, and once a year, when I sit on the balcony in the sunshine
to show myself, you must lie at my feet as behoves a shadow. I may tell
you I am going to marry the princess. This very evening the wedding
will take place."

"No! This is really too bad!" said the learned man. "I will not
and shall not do it. It would be deceiving the whole country, and the
princess as well. I will tell everything — that I am the man and that
you are the shadow; that you are only dressed up in men's clothes!"

520

THE SHADOW

"No one would believe you," said the shadow. "Be reasonable or I
will call the guard."

"I will go straight to the princess," said the learned man.
"But I shall go first," said the shadow, "and you shall go to prison."
And the learned man had to submit to this, for the guard obeyed the
shadow, as they knew the princess was going to marry him.

"You tremble," said the princess when the shadow came into her
presence. "Has anything happened? You must not make yourself ill,
for we are going to have our wedding this evening. '

" I have gone through
)iost terrible experience
can imagine," said the

the
you
shadow

Just fancy ! Well,
such a poor brain as that oi
a shadow cannot stand much.
Only fancy ! My shadow has
gone mad. Hethinkshe isthe
man, and that I — just fancy!
— that I am his shadow."

" It is terrible! " said the
princess. " Has he been
locked up r "

" He has. I am afraid he
will never get well again."

"Poor shadow!" said
the princess. " He must be
very unhappy. It would be
a mercy to relieve him of the
bit of life he has left; and
V^/" i J ''' ^^, w hen I really come to think

^^ '^^^ it over, I think it will be

necessarv to get rid oi' him
quietly."

"It is a great pity, for he
was a faithful servant," said the shadow, with something like a sigh.
"You have a noble character," said the princess.

In the evening the whole town was illuminated, and guns were fired —
boom! boom! — and the soldiers presented arms. That was indeed a
wedding ! The princess and the shadow stepped out upon the balcony to
show themselves and hear the people shout " Hurrah ! " once more.

The learned man did not hear anything of all this, for they had made
an end of him.

THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA

®,

(^ -

I f ^

THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA

ONCE upon a time there was a prince. He wanted to marry a
princess, hut she must he a real princess. So he traveled all
over the world to find such a princess, hut everywhere there was
something in the way.

Princesses there were in ahundance, hut whether they were real
princesses he could not quite make t)ut. There was always something
which was not quite right. So he returned home, and was so distressed,
tor he wanted so much to rind a real princess.

523

524

THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA

One evening a terrible storm set in. It lightened and thundered, and
the rain poured down in torrents. It was really dreadful ! All at once
there was a knock, at the gate of the city, and the old king himself went
to open it.

It was a princess who stood outside. But, merciful heavens ! what a
sight she was, after all the rains and the terrible weather ! The water ran
down her hair and clothes, and in at the toes of her shoes and out at the
heels ; and she told the king she was a real princess.

"Ah, well, we shall soon find that out," thought the old queen to
herself; but she did not say anything. She went into the bedroom, took
off all the bedclothes, and put a pea at the bottom of the bed. She then
took twenty mattresses and put them on top of the pea, and next she put
twenty eider-down beds on the top of the mattresses.

There the princess was to sleep that night.

In the morning they asked her how she had slept.

"Oh, horribly!" said the princess. "I have scarcely closed my eyes
the whole night. Goodness knows what was in the bed. I have been
lying on something hard till I am blue and black all over my body. It
is really dreadful ! "

Then they knew that she was a real princess, since she had felt the
pea through the twenty mattresses and the twenty eider-down beds. No
one but a real princess could be so tender and delicate.

The prince then took her for his wife, for now he knew that he had
got a real princess; and the pea was placed in the Art Museum, where it
is still to be seen, if no one has stolen it.

Now, that 's what I call a really good story !

?'1'&'-

i rw'-^ \^

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